It Takes Two to Play the Game
by Yuzume Mikien
Summary: Full Summary in Story "I played the “Which one is Hikaru” game the other day… without you. A young girl called out your name, but I was the only one there. For your sake, Hikaru, I let her win." "You see Hikaru, she's having your baby..."
1. To Play the Game Alone

Greetings every reader out there, it's been a long while, but Yuzume Mikien's back and ready for action. I haven't posted a story or updated in years as my writing time fell short and my need to post fell dramatically after my homophobic father found all my yaoi/mpreg stories. Not a good thing. Well, now I've returned, a little older and wiser than before, and maybe this time I can post fanfiction for all to enjoy. Yugioh and Naruto have come and gone, but I have found my new muse. Welcome to Yuzume's first Ouran High School Host Club fanfic.

**Summary:** I played the "Which one is Hikaru" game the other day…without you. I had no choice; you're getting married after all and girls aren't supposed to be swooning over you any more. She came to me thinking I was you, and though I could have corrected her- I didn't. You see, as I played the game and she called out your name, looking deep into my eyes, she was holding her stomach the whole time.

I played the "Which one is Hikaru" game the other day… without you. A young girl called out your name and held out her hand, I took it. For your sake, Hikaru, I let her win.

After the graduation of the final three original members of the host club, paths quickly diverge. Haruhi leaves behind the friends she had become so close to for a University in the United States, while her companions lives begin to separate as well. Strangely the separation has the harshest effect on the Hitachiin twins and in order to help his brother move on, Kaoru decides to sacrifice his bond by pushing his brother to the top of their family's company; even if he has to take the blame for his brother's mistakes.

Seven years later, Haruhi returns and finds the twins in two separate worlds. Can she reunite the Hitachiin twins in time before the life and traditions of the aristocracy take full affect and separate the twins forever?

**Disclaimer:** I do not and have never owned OHSHC. I wish I did, but then I wouldn't be here if that was the case.

**Title:** It Takes Two to Play the Game

**Author:** Yuzume Mikien (Whoo I'm back)

**Pairings:** I don't have a straight line up yet, but… TamakixHaruhi, hinted HikaruxHaruhi, HikaruxOC, HoneyxOC, hopefully other pairings will form after a while.

**Rating:** Pg-13 to M, just to be safe.

**Warnings:** Language, and suggestive themes, but for now, keeping the content at a safe PG-13.

**Genre:** Drama, Anguish

**PLEASE REVIEW** I love reviews and what you guys think. If you have any ideas for the storyline I'm always open for more. Oh… please don't flame. Constructively criticize, but don't flame.

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Prologue: To Play the Game Alone

Kaoru POV

Once we were very close, as close as any twin brothers could be. Our love for each other was strong, so strong that it became the entertainment for the girls of our entire high school. We didn't mind, for we both had learned to lower the walls of our world to welcome the others of society.

At times, I wish we had never joined the Ouran Host Club. I wish our cold exteriors had been even colder so that Tamaki couldn't have broken into our world so easily. If he had never gotten through, we would have never gotten into the carriage with the others, not knowing at the time, that such a group had been brought together by an illusion. The Carriage would turn back into a pumpkin after all. I wish we had never entered that carriage. I wish we had never fallen into that dream, for because of it, you had to suffer when the carriage did turn back into that stupid pumpkin.

Haruhi left shortly after graduation, leaving behind nothing more than six small notes personally addressed to each of us. She had explained that she was going to go see the world for a little while, before choosing the best University where she would continue her studies in law. We were all heart-broken at her sudden departure. I remember how Tamaki-Sempai and Honey-sempai were openly crying as they read their notes. Mori-Sempai and Kyouya-Sempai stood in a melancholy silence. You merely stood where you were, note in hand, eyes brimming with tears that you would not let fall. It pained you when she left, I know, but I was the one who finished your heart completely when I told you to forget.

I wanted to ease your pain by telling you that life had to go on. I wanted you to understand that the carriage no longer existed and it was only you and me once more. Yet you still held on to her memory and when I begged you to forget, you suddenly began to turn our own illusion of happiness together back into the useless pumpkin it was.

Since Haruhi left, I can't talk to you. We're no longer twin brothers connected by our love for each other. Instead of turning to me when you were hurt you fell into the succulent life of the wealthy. Young girls became your outlet for touch and human compassion; no longer would you hold foolish twin brother close. I know it was entirely my fault that we are now like this, but if we must go our separate ways; it would be best for you to go ahead and take the best. It's the only way I can repent for crushing your need in me.

Two years have passed since we last saw Haruhi's face. You're engaged now and once you get married, you'll become the newest CEO of the Hitachiin Family's Fashion Dynasty. I'm not surprised; I knew that if you didn't replace her in your heart you would suffer, but did you actually need to replace her memory with every single girl you meet?

Life goes on brother; time does not stop. I understand why you would fell in love with another girl as fast as you did. I told you to forget and so you listened. Yet I want you to be happy too, and if you keep living each day rushing ahead without me to think rationally for you, you'll crash. Hikaru please don't be stupid. I know you may no longer hear me calling to you, but I want you to know that I'm still behind you. Watching and waiting until the day I can support you again.

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"Hikaru…" My voice seemed weak compared to the sounds of my twin brother typing effortlessly on his computer.

"Hm, what is it Kaoru?"

"I need to tell you something." I sat across the room from him on his bed, while he continued to work at his desk.

For a second he looked up at me, our golden gazes mirroring each other's. His fingers stopped flying over the keyboard and he leaned his head against his raised knuckle. I was in his room; a rare occasion at this point of our lives, and he knew well enough that I had something to say or wouldn't have been there in the first place. "It's been a while since you've entered my room without having a need to say anything," he declared. "What is it? What's on your mind?"

"How are our stocks doing?" I asked this lightly to break his awkward wait.

He frowned and then gave me his devilish grin, "Since when have you ever cared about accounting? You've always been allergic to numbers."

"Yes, but Otou-san has been giving you a lot of work lately-"

"Ootori Kyouya seemed to have survived the workload. Are you saying I'm not as good?"

Uncomfortable. Our conversations have become nothing more than uncomfortable. For seventeen and a half years we slept together, ate together, and even finished each other's sentences. Now everything I seem to say sparks in him an argument. I pouted, "I was just trying to start a conversation. You may be the one taking over the Company, but you need to remember I'm still here."

His smile had faltered and he explained, "Kaoru, what did you want to tell me? You've never been good at math so Otou-san gave me the responsibility over our company's stocks. Didn't Okaa-san give you something to do?" I knew he was clearly stressed. To get ready to lead the company, our mother and father had given him almost every responsibility the CEO had. They gave me the petty things; my biggest job was my brother's translator.

"I've finished everything that was needed to be done. I called our branches in Milan, Paris, and New York for a status report. I translated those and organized them in order of importance. One of our branches in Hong Kong is being bought out by a rival company. I've called the corporate boss there and demanded that we hold a meeting to declare a partnership. I've sent the new advertisement designs to the branch in New York (after translating them from Japanese to English). There's nothing else I can do." I wanted to help my brother so much. How could I slide through effortlessly with work when my brother couldn't even get a day off? I found my hands clenching into fists. Hikaru would have most of the work but he would have a flawless public appearance; I would make sure of it.

Hikaru sighed and continued, "Kaoru, when I take full control of the company, you know perfectly well that I'm giving you half of everything. Be patient, will you? Once Sachiko and I get married, there is a good chance Okaa-san will want us to move to Paris so I can work in our strongest Corporation and still be close to the Milan branch. You will remain in Japan and be in full control of the Tokyo branches and the American branches. We're twins, we're sharing the workload fifty/fifty until the end."

"I know but…" I stopped, I had wanted to start off with a light conversation, but the gravity of the topic was suffocating. Before any further words could be exchanged I had to tell him what was happening. What I had been told and how our lives would change. He was going to be happy at the top and I would be the one to take his mistakes into my own hands. It was the least I could do for the future owner of the Hitachiin Company. "Hikaru-"

"Kaoru, I know that you want to tell me something. Please, just say it. The more you put this off, the more you'll worry me."

I looked up at him, at the face that wasn't mine, but looked just like it. He was frowning with worry now, the last shred of care that was left for me in his eyes. "There was this…girl."

Eyes widening, my brother stood from his chair. The old Hikaru from our childhood returned for a few moments as he came quickly to my side and sat down on the bed. "A girl? Well, well, well, why didn't you say so?" His face was suddenly alert and interested, a grin plastered across it. "Who was it?"

_Someone you knew and I didn't._ I thought, but didn't say. _She came to me today and called me Hikaru. _

"Do you remember that game we used to play? The game where someone had to guess which of us was you." _I played the "Which one is Hikaru" game alone today._

My brother stared quietly then shook his head still smiling, "Don't change the subject. I know you're shy about this kind of things."

"No… I mean…" _She wanted to tell me-you something urgent. Strangely, I didn't want to correct her so I let her believe I was you._

"Kaoru… Kaoru… come on! You've never been good with the ladies."

"Well… actually…" _She started talking about some night you two spent together. I didn't say anything; I allowed her to give me all the details. _"Hikaru… you…" _I told you Hikaru, don't be stupid. You've been engaged for six months, but according to her, you slept together a month and a half ago. You idiot!_

"You're not being fair, Kaoru. Spill it! I want to know about that girl."

_No. You don't want to know about that girl. She told me everything. She told me…_ "Hikaru, she… she told me…"

To ease the pain of that he had felt after Haruhi left, he slept with every girl that would have him.

"WHAT? Kaoru spit it out!" Hikaru was excited now and had grabbed my shoulders. "Kaoru, the suspense is killing me. I've been so afraid that you would be stuck virgin or something. Kaoru-"

"I'm a father… or at least I'm going to become one." _She's pregnant with your child, Hikaru…Your Child._

His grip had slackened and his eyes, once full of excitement, became dipped in shock. I looked back at him gravely, as the thought registered. "W-What?"

I smiled weakly, "I don't want her to get rid of the baby… so I've been telling myself that I'm going to become a father. I guess telling you has made it official." _The baby may be yours but I've been telling myself that I will be the father of the child. You screwed up, but as your brother I'll make that mistake disappear; telling you has made it final. _"You don't need to worry about me. I'll manage Otou-san and Okaa-san." _I'll take the blame, just keep moving ahead and leave me behind. If the carriage has to turn back into a pumpkin so be it. _

This time, Hikaru didn't reply. No words of support or worry slipped from his lips. I smiled and quietly accepted fate. Standing, I left his side and headed for the door of his room. Before leaving I turned, "She seems to be a nice girl. I'm glad that she'll be my child's mother."

_I played the "Which one is Hikaru" game the other day… without you. A young girl called out your name and held out her hand, I took it in your place. For your sake, Hikaru, I let her win._

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**REMEMBER TO REVIEW!!!** Click the link below and leave a comment!! PLEASE!!

Next Time: Two years turn into five and Haruhi returns. The whole group is reunited, including two new members.


	2. The Only Two Winners of the Game

**Note: This is quite a long chapter. You might need some time to read this. Please Read this chapter, and REVIEW!**

Hello again everyone. It's Yuzume once more and welcome to Chapter One of _It Takes Two to Play the Game_. If you are reading this, most likely you have read the prologue and have been caught in the grip of this interesting drama. I just realized that I should explain a few things about myself before we deepen the relationship between writer and readers.

First things first, I'm Yuzume Mikien (my overall cyber identity), I'm sixteen and am a full time student. I used to write Yugioh and Naruto yaoi/mpreg fics a few years back… about two years ago. Unfortunately, my family moves quite a bit and during my last move my thought process was interrupted, my new school dumped work much harder than any school I've been to, and finally my homophobic father found my fanfics, read a couple of chapters and snapped. And that was the day Yuzume Mikien, the fanfic writer, fell into animosity after a long lecture about how much yaoi is immoral. OK enough of that.

My largest aim during my fanfictions is to depict a well written story with characters of my favorite anime/books/shows as realistically as possible. The characters I use aren't mine so I have no right to completely depict them differently from their original creators. I am a writer of dramatic notions. Frivolous random blurbs are an abstract idea to me. Ok, that's enough from me.

Oh, but I love reviews! You see, if I don't get reviews from my readers I either get discouraged that I stop writing or I take it that my story didn't get off at a good start. Alas, I received a good number of reviews for a prologue so I'm continuing the story to all our delight.

No more boring you with my life, on with the story!

Last Time: Time has gone by and due to certain circumstances Kaoru has made the decision to father his brother's illegitimate child. It's a sacrifice to make up for bringing his brother's dreams and wishes to an end. Unfortunately, in order to able to take his brother's mistakes into his own hands, Kaoru makes the decision to sever the bond with his brother… almost permanently.

Disclaimer: I do not and have never owned OHSHC. I wish I did, but then I wouldn't be here if that was the case.

Title: It Takes Two to Play the Game

Author: Yuzume Mikien (Whoo I'm back)

Pairings: I don't have a straight line up yet, but… TamakixHaruhi, hinted HikaruxHaruhi, HikaruxOC, HoneyxOC, hopefully other pairings will form after a while.

Rating: Pg-13 to M, just to be safe.

Warnings: Language, and suggestive themes, but for now, keeping the content at a safe PG-13.

Genre: Drama, Anguish

**PLEASE REVIEW** I love reviews and what you guys think. If you have any ideas for the storyline I'm always open for more. Oh… please don't flame. Constructively criticize, but don't flame.

On with the story!

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Chapter One: The Only Two Winners of the Game

Normal POV

The music echoed through the ballroom, flowing by the dancers who traveled gracefully across the floor. The tune filled the room with its invisibly happy form. The couples on the floor danced as if no watched, but held on to each other with a respect that distinguished them as members of aristocracy. You see, no normal commoner could enter the gathering that was taking place that night, June 9th more specifically, the Hitachiin twin's twentyth birthday.

Suddenly a bell rang and the music came to slow end. The crowd on the floor dispersed and all eyes fell upon the balcony at the front of the hall. A family of four stood upon the balcony, smiling widely. The twin celebrants were just as cheerful as their parents began to greet the guests. Their father stepped forward and began to speak, "Welcome ladies and gentlemen. We of the Hitachiin family are very grateful for your attendance this evening. My sons cannot begin to express their utmost appreciation to have you all here. I-"

Abruptly a unified yell echoed through the ballroom. Said twins suddenly pushed by their father with the most devilish grins plastered upon their faces. "You guys are awesome!!"

While their father watched with extreme shock and useless disapproval. He could only frown at his sons, but with a gentle touch from his wife, he backed off and gave his adult sons their full debut. The elder twin held out his hands, "Kaoru and I are really blown away by… everything. Thank you so much to every single person in this ballroom. I doubt Kaoru and I even thought we'd even make it to twenty with our sanities intact."

Kaoru's voice broke through his brother's short monologue, "I guess what my brother's trying to say is that we are extremely grateful to have our friends and family here to celebrate our birthday. It's been a long while since we've had a gala this big, and it never ceases to blow us away." The younger brother smiled gently, a polar opposite of his brother. He attempted to act polite, but suddenly his brother's arm snaked around his waist.

"Oh ignore him, Kaoru always has to be so gentle with everyone. Is that right, Kaoru?" With his free arm Hikaru trailed his brother's neck and then held his chin in a sensual touch "Or should I bring you to admit to this whole room how you really feel with my own method of coaxing."

"Hi-Hikaru…" Kaoru began then trailed off into his throaty gasp that suddenly made the complete ballroom explode is shrieks and squeals. The men sighed and rolled their eyes, except for four young friends who chuckled quietly to themselves. Hikaru pulled his brother away from the front of the balcony and into the small presentation room behind it. Their parents followed after their mother commenced the party once more, their mother smiling amusedly and their father scowling quite gravely.

The elder of the twins swiftly released his brother once they entered the small room. He was chuckling and muttered an indifferent "Never gets old, eh Kaoru?" The younger nodded, the polite smile he had used for their guests still on his face. Hikaru cocked an eyebrow and queried, "Kaoru, what's wrong? There are so many girls out there who would die just be near you. What's wrong with my dear, dear brother? You have such a depressing look in your eyes. How are any of the girls going to want to come near you with a face like that?" Hikaru extended his hand towards his sibling's face, but before it reached there…

"That's enough Hikaru!" Mr. Hitachiin snapped. His sons looked at him and Hikaru's arm fell lifelessly at his side. "Your brother is making the right decision by being so unresponsive to your silly games… though moments ago… he could have held his tongue a bit longer."

"Now, now, dear." Their mother called, but her husband disregarded her. Mr. Hitachiin had never been too involved with his son's lives, but at twenty, he knew that they needed to be straightened out, especially the older son.

"You are to be the new owner of this company soon and I should be expecting much more from you than those foolish activities. You will be married next year, the least you could do is to not flatter the ladies using your brother."

Hikaru frowned and glanced at his brother. Their golden gazes held each other's for several moments, but their connection was much too weak to bring out an outcome. "Otou-san, look I understand, but-"

"As the elder brother could you at least have some maturity when presenting yourself in front of your fellow acquaintances? You are not part of that frivolous Host Club any longer."

"Otou-san… Could I…" Kaoru attempted to protect his sibling from the one-sided verbal onslaught, but to no avail.

"Kaoru, why don't you go take part in the festivities?"

"But Otou-san, it really isn't necessary. Hikaru and I won't act in such a way again. We'll enjoy the rest of our celebration, won't we Hikaru?" Kaoru kept smiling and took his brother by the arm. "Let's enjoy our twentyth birthday!"

"Kaoru, please. Yes, you both are now twenty, but I think I need to speak with your brother alone."

"Otou-san…"

"Kaoru-chan, please listen to your father." With this from Mrs. Hitachiin, the younger brother took a furtive glance at his mother then brother, before bowing himself out.

The last words he heard before entering the ballroom were, "If you could at least act more like the Ohtori boys…"

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Before long, Hikaru came to accompany his twin again. His face gave nothing away; only his trademark smirk lit his face. Kaoru opened his mouth to speak, but his older brother addressed him first, "All alone again? Come now Kaoru, I'm not going to always be there to push you ahead. Go get some girls or something, will you?"

"Hikaru, I don't care about that right now. Look at you. You're- I mean our father, he-" Kaoru began. He sat at a lone table at the corner of the ballroom. No one was nearby or even knew he was there. Without his louder and more social brother, Kaoru was nothing more than the forgotten twin, merely the substitute if there was need of one.

His brother had completely ignored him. Gold eyes traveling around the space, Hikaru whistled, "Whoah check out that one. Kaoru, what do you think about asking her to dance?"

Standing, Kaoru grabbed his brother's arm, "Stop that. I want to know what Otou-san said."

"Kaoru, you really need to ask that girl to dance. She really is something." Absent mindedly, Hikaru stepped out Kaoru's grip to look around.

"Hikaru, are you listening to me? I don't want to dance. Stop acting as if girls are everything to you. It isn't and never will be."

"Hmm, I've never seen her before." Kaoru glared harshly at his brother, but his gaze fell in the direction of Hikaru's sight. He didn't speak, but stared at a beautiful girl not much older than nineteen. Kaoru could admit it; she was beautiful, with dark black hair and deep brown eyes that looked almost as black as her pupils. She had a disciplined look to her, but her elegant moves on the dance floor gave her a freer appearance. A light smile graced her lips as she swayed to the beat of the music; her body small in stature, but hosting a pair of decent sized breasts over a thin waist and wide hips. Kaoru felt the heat slowly fill his face and he turned away.

After a moment of joined silence, Hikaru spoke again, this time distantly, "If you're not going to dance with her, I will." He didn't give Kaoru time to answer, but began to move in the direction of the young woman. Kaoru hesitated and then rushed forward, taking his brother by the arm once more. "What are you doing?!" He whispered desperately, the older Hitachiin's gaze mirroring his own just seconds later. His brother's eyes now held a deeper intent, a promiscuous look that Kaoru had seen too many times before, for the last two years. "You're engaged! If Sachiko was here you wouldn't be doing this. Hikaru, don't be an idiot! You are getting married-"

Abruptly, Hikaru jerked away and turned on the younger twin, "I heard you the first time, Kaoru!" If the music hadn't been playing and if they had not been in the corner of ballroom, Hikaru's statement would have been heard. "Look, I get it and I know, so why don't you stop acting like I'm stupid? You and Otou-san are both the same, always thinking that I'm going to do something foolish. He keeps pointing me out, when my **twin** just sits there doing nothing! If you're not going to make your moves yourself for once then there's no point in controlling me. Stop being a hypocrite, Kaoru! You've tried to control me once, and look how the hell I turned out."

Kaoru froze in his place. The brothers expressed opposite emotions, one of anger and the other of regret. The normally submissive twin did not move, metaphorically slapped in the face by his brother's words. Normally, he would have had the ability to refute or at least speak out a sarcastic remark, but Hikaru's declaration hit too close to the truth. Moments turned into minutes of a painful silence until the music of the room changed in tempo and a slow song replaced the beat that once was playing.

Beginning to walk towards the dance floor, Hikaru swiftly altered his expression to one of casual content, as if he hadn't snapped at his brother. "Don't worry, Kaoru. Besides, it's just one dance." The only thing the said sibling could do was stare at the retreating form of the direct heir to the Hitachiin corporation.

From afar, Kaoru watched. He sat alone, hidden from the rest of the crowd. He knew he should have been more social, but being around Hikaru would've made it harder for his brother to gain publicity alone. For years, the two brothers had been known unanimously, but now it was Hikaru's turn to get the spotlight. One dance, turned into two, two dances turned into three, and finally three dances turned into a drink. The couple slowly strolled out of sight, leaving Kaoru alone to his thoughts. He knew his brother; he knew what Hikaru could/would do. Women had become nothing to the brother; even the two kings of the host club, Host King Tamaki and Shadow King Kyouya had noticed this.

Kaoru cringed, thinking about the attractive girl who Hikaru had chosen for the night. Who was she and why was she at the party in the first place? The twins did not know her and she didn't look like any daughter of a client. After a few minutes, the two were in sight again, two glasses of champagne in their hands. The girl was smiling marvelously and Hikaru was clearly having a good time. He held her around the waist, her silk, sapphire blue gown wrinkling under his hold. Kaoru wanted to interrupt them, but guilt was strong. There had to be someone who knew her, or at the least knew something about her family. Kaoru gazed at the mystery woman once more and suddenly gasped with realization. With a gentle smirk from Hikaru's young dance partner, Kaoru was quickly reminded of Kyouya Ohtori. The older boy must know something and as if by magic, Kaoru turned to find said Ohtori behind him. "Kyouya Sempai!"

"My cousin." Austere and reserved in manner, the third Ohtori son looked at the lone twin, arms crossed. "That is what you were wondering, am I correct?"

"C-Cousin?"

"Unfortunately…" Kyouya moved his head to watch the family member with a mix of disapproved interest. "Tamaki noticed you from across the room. You don't think that the rest of our group doesn't notice a lone Hitachiin twin when we see one. You are clearly observing the fact that your older twin brother, who is engaged, is flirting with some random girl neither of you two know."

Kaoru, who had stood up to find the Ohtori, fell upon his chair once more. "I-I didn't know you had a cousin. I thought it was only you, your brothers, and sister."

"Easily explained, I have an uncle, who is rarely openly discussed in my family."

"Why?" Kaoru stared at the cousin, whose tanned skin contrasted with that of her older male relative, who stood before him.

Kyouya adjusted his glasses and frowned ever so slightly, "Her name's Maria, Maria Angelina Del Rosario Ohtori. She's similar to Tamaki in a sense- being an illegitimate, I mean." The young man seemed uncomfortable speaking about the girl. Tense and constrained, Kyouya readjusted his suit jacket and returned his attention to Kaoru, who listened intently. "I'd advise you to stop your brother before he gets into trouble. You two seem to bring it about wherever you go. She's not worth his time-"

"Kyouya Sempai, why is she-"

"-or yours for that matter." Noticing Kaoru's inquisitive expression, the third son sighed and finally consented to explain, "She's here because my Uncle is incompetent. When my father and uncle were young, my Uncle went to Okinawa for business and met a Venezuelan-American woman who was studying abroad. They made a number of foolish moves and nine months later Maria was born. My Uncle is my father's younger brother, and being my siblings and I were alive and healthy (though mere children) at the time, he had no rights to the Ohtori Company. Even so, my father advised him to get rid of the child and mother, but indignant as the Ohtori family was, my Uncle decided to simply marry the woman and move to the United States. I will cease to say more… oh, and I wouldn't repeat this to anyone else, do I make myself clear?"

Nodding, Kaoru got to his feet, but he momentarily queried, "Why is your family in touch with hers then?"

"It's not that we had any choice. My Uncle was disowned a long time ago, but due to certain… circumstances my father was forced to comply with my Uncle's will. She's lived in the Ohtori mansion for almost a year now; previous to that, she lived with my estranged Uncle and her mother… before the fire, of course." It was obvious, Kyouya had been raised with distaste for his illegitimate cousin for he did not try to hide irritation. "I'm going to say it again, stop Hikaru before her genetics begin to play with his mind. You comprehend the statement, 'like mother, like daughter,' yes?"

Kaoru nodded again and started to walk towards the pair who sat a distance away from his isolated table. A number of guests called out to him their congratulations and birthday wishes, but he heard nothing except Kyouya's scornful words, "She's a mere **commoner** with a deceased **mother**, and an irrational father."

Those final words brought the Hitachiin twin to a sudden stop, meters away from his brother and Maria. Recognition filled his senses, making him doubtful of his actions. Haruhi had been a commoner and she had suffered the losses of family as well. Maria was so very similar to Hikaru's previous crush that Kaoru couldn't get himself to move any further. The unreasonably strict doctrine of an Ohtori son had deafened Kyouya's ears to the unusual familiarity of his explanation, but Kaoru knew he couldn't stop his brother… again.

The room was darkening, the music was slowing once more, and Hikaru had taken the Ohtori female by the hand, escorting her to the middle of the floor. Kaoru stood silently in the crowd, watching forlornly. He had to allow this to happen.

And so the older Hitachiin began to dance with the illegitimate child of the Ohtori family.

Seconds flew by and the music played on. The voices began to whisper around Kaoru. "Look at the adorable couple."

"Is that the older or younger twin?"

"Oh, you know the older twin is engaged; he wouldn't do something so public."

"Then it's Kaoru. Look's like both twins are going to become wonderful husbands one day."

"Aww, even Kaoru has his attention on a future bride."

"Proud of what you see?" Kaoru sluggishly registered the words that swum around him, he turned. "You're Hikaru, right?"

With these words, Kaoru's thoughts began to come. _This has happened before… I was asked this question once before… _"Uh…" Kaoru swallowed and looked at one of his mother's close friends who had come over to ask.

"You and your brother have been so close. You must have been worried about your brother. Kaoru has always been the shy one. Doesn't it feel relieving to know that 'your younger siblings are making their own decisions now?'"

_This was the first time I played without him. The first time I personally split our bond of equality. I did this all before! _Kaoru found himself nodding, and smiling, "Yes… Yes, it is relieving to see Kaoru make his impression on the ladies without me."

_No, he's not me, I'm not him. This is what we know; this is what society has never figured out. I've answered this question like this already. I can't do this again! I can't!_ Aside from his reply, Kaoru backed away from the lady and moved towards the dancing couple. _The last time I just stood there. I have to stop him. _He began to walk faster in direction of the other Hitachiin brother. _I need to stop him. He doesn't know what he's doing. You can't build another illusion, Hikaru!_ "Hikaru…. Hikaru…!" Kaoru's voice echoed softly as he pushed closer, "Hikaru!"

The dance was reaching its climax and with a final dip Hikaru had the girl in his arms; their faces inches from each other. There was an awed gasp from the crowd and Kaoru gave out a final yell, "Don't! Hikaru!!!"

The fellow twin snapped his head up away from his dance partner's face. He looked directly at Kaoru in surprise, but in seconds the emotion melted into pure elation. He started to giggle. In an instant, Maria in his embrace had started to giggle as well. The crowd was silent, but the two giggled, their voices mixing together in perfect harmony; the voices that sounded similar to little boys. Kaoru came to a halt in front of Hikaru, his call falling out of tune with their mixed giggles. "Hikaru…?"

Straightening the couple, grinned and finally spoke, unanimously, "Otou-san, it's Kohaku, not Hikaru." The scene before him began to melt away, "Ha ha, looks like Otou-san's still sleeping."

The darkened room was broken by a ray of light, so bright that Kaoru had to shield his eyes. He squinted and tentatively began to look directly into the light. "What…?" From the light, a loud ring tone was playing in the distance. Suddenly the sound of the phone brought him to full consciousness. "WHAT!?" With this, Kaoru Hitachiin, age twenty-four, fell out of his dream and into reality.

***********

The younger brother, Kaoru, sat up quickly. Light blinded him from all sides and he blinked his eyes. Pupils readjusting to the bright sunlight that came through the window by his bed, he looked before him into the pair of golden gazes belonging to his 'sons', who playfully leaned against his blanketed lap. Shaking his head, he rubbed his forehead. "B-Boys?"

"Otou-san, Daddy, Papa!!" The pair of identical twins called at the same time. "Wake up now! Wake up now! You're phone is ringing. Kyouya Oji-san is calling you to wake you up." The two giggled, revealing the sources of the giggling within the dream.

Kaoru glanced at his cell phone on his bedside table. His thoughts slowly grasped the knowledge that what he had been reliving had been nothing more than a dream, of a night nearly five years previous. One of the twins climbed over his legs and grabbed his phone, handing it over to his extended hand. The new pair of Hitachiin twins were as in tuned as their 'father' and 'uncle' had been. Their gold eyes watching 'Otou-san' carefully, they cocked their identical black haired heads to the side. Phone in hand, Kaoru collapsed into his pillows once more, receiving a number of giggles from the children. He tiredly flipped the phone on and answered groggily, "Hello?"

"Heh, did I happen to wake you, Kaoru?" The cool voice of Kyouya came flowing in through the receiver, "How long do you need to sleep, may I ask? It is nearly eleven."

Kaoru rubbed his eyes with his free hand and his 'sons' routinely came to lie beside him, his arm habitually lying upon the bed, with which the boys used as a long pillow and plaything. "For a very long time being that I'm a single parent with a company **and** two, three year old boys to take care of. What are you doing calling me on a Sunday morning?"

"Otou-san, we're turning four tomorrow!" One of the twins corrected him.

"You're turning four in a week, Kohaku." His father corrected the correction. Rolling eyes he thought, _Children and their abstract notion of time_. He yawned, "What do you want, Kyouya? I personally have a huge headache and sleep didn't help me very much."

The other twin voiced out concernedly, "Otou-san, did you have a bad dream?"

"Something like that, Keisuke." Kaoru answered the second twin. "Kyouya, your voice isn't the most pleasant thing to hear in the morning." Kaoru mentally alluded to his memory of Kyouya's words during the dream, but refrained from saying more.

"Touché, well if that is so I must then apologize for my impudence and then merely hang up."

Kaoru sighed, "Ok, ok… Tell me what you want. Ow, Kohaku, Papa's arm doesn't bend that way!"

Kohaku quickly muttered, "Sorry…" The boy glanced up at his father, who looked up at the ceiling nonchalantly. With a devilish smirk, the child continued to play with his father's arm while his twin watched in amused silence.

"Well, I just wanted you to know…" Kyouya began, Kaoru ignored his sons' actions, "…that Yuzuru Suou called me earlier today. It seems Tamaki is planning a Host Club reunion, hopefully next week- even the same day as the twin's birthday if you don't mind."

The young father remained silent before muttering, "Reunion…?"

"Yes… You see, a little friend of ours, who we haven't seen for a good seven years arrived at the airport at 8:20 am this very morning. If you do recall, we all knew **her** as 'the Natural'."

A large gasp could be heard as the only retort, Kaoru had swiftly gotten up on his free elbow, the three year old twins consequently jumping back. His eyes were wide and his mouth had fallen open wordlessly. The other twin, Keisuke, scowled at his brother, "Otou-san told you not to bend his arm, Haku! See what you did?"

"I didn't mean it, Kei!" His brother countered. They watched their father for a few moments, in fear of his reaction.

"You…You mean…" His reaction wasn't what they had expected.

"She's back, Kaoru. Miss Haruhi Fujioka is back. So… I'll see you in my office by one. Will that be reasonable?" When he didn't get an answer, Kyouya chuckled, "I take that as a yes." The Ohtori, clearly amused, hung up.

Silence engulfed the bedroom, Kaoru could only blink in utter shock. _She's come back…She's returned._ The boys watched him warily, not really knowing what was going on.

"Otou-san?" They both queried together, but their call came upon deaf ears as the younger twin of the CEO of the Hitachiin corporation climbed quickly out of bed. He opened his closet and began to rummage around for something to wear. Seeing their father getting together his best suit, the twins made the basic innocent child's assumption, "Where you going?"

Kaoru stopped his search and turned to his 'sons'. "**We're** going to visit Kyouya Oji-san today. A very close friend of mine and all your Oji-sans, just came back from America." He declared with a smile, and with a cry of delight, the children tumbled out of bed and followed their father's actions.

When the two boys had rushed out of the room and out of sight, Kaoru froze; his grin faltering. He sat on his bed, looked into a large mirror at the other end of the room, and held out his suit jacket. His words called out for his lost brother, "Hmph… The one who started all of this has come back, Hikaru… So where the hell are you now?"

**********

Haruhi POV

"For safety precautions, please do not leave your baggage unattended, thank you… All suspicious baggage and carryon luggage are subject to search without warrant by airport security. We apologize for the inconvenience."

"_**For safety precautions, please do not leave your baggage unattended, thank you… All suspicious baggage and carryon luggage are subject to search without warrant by airport security. We apologize for the inconvenience."**_

The explanations being explained in both Japanese and English through the airport speakers felt like music to my ears, as I stood quietly with my baggage in the waiting area of the said facility. I took a long intake of breath and sighed; it was good to be home in Japan again. After nearly twenty-four hours of traveling from Boston to Tokyo, I was more than happy to be off that flying tin can of an airplane and on solid land once more. The familiar sights, sounds, and smells brought memories back, and I took my location in slowly, trying to relax after the stress of boarding, switching flights, getting through security checks, and the like. I had number of things left to do on my schedule, but I was glad that I had reached my destination safely. I was back in my home country, speaking my native language after seven years of living in Boston, Massachusetts and speaking nothing but English.

I took a few seconds more to get my bearings, before picking up my luggage and heading for the exit of the airport. It was nine in the morning and a bit chilly as it was a Sunday in early February. I had left right after graduation, during the hot summer, so returning to Japan during a complete different season was a bit ironic. I tightened my coat around my body and walked into the cold wind of Tokyo. The tall buildings reminded me of New York and Boston, but I knew more than anything that Tokyo skyscrapers were significant, very personal to my childhood and life. Walking close to the road, I decided to hail a cab, luckily having the extra yen on me to be able to get one. My baggage was too heavy to carry through Tokyo in search of a hotel. I waited and waved, hoping that a free taxi would see me, but in the midst of a crowd of suit wearing businessmen and families, I had a feeling that getting a cab would be difficult.

Sighing again, I returned to the airport. I hoped that someone inside could point out a hotel within walking distance. I strolled in but came to a sudden stop as from the corner of my eye I noticed my name neatly written on a small sign being held up by a young man in a simple black suit. I turned and looked at him. It seemed he didn't know who he was waiting for, but he held his sign up with disciplined purpose. Glancing around, I checked my surroundings; I had never asked for a private pick-up service.

_Unless, I have very rich friends in high places._ I came to think after a moment of contemplation. I dreaded coming towards the man in any case he worked for a memorable blonde who I had known in my teenage years. There was no way he could have known I was coming back. I left so suddenly after graduation to reach the deadline to apply for Harvard Law that there was no way anyone except Dad could contact me. Years had passed so swiftly, no decent being could keep tabs on one person like me for **that** long.

I made my way in the opposite direction of the poor escort, feeling slightly guilty. The members of the host club had no right to merely forgive me for disappearing or even continue to help me in every unusual way and shape they could. My mind turned over the six faces I had left. When I thought of Ohtori Kyouya, I ceased walking. The Shadow King knew everything and anything about everyone. He was the only person I knew who could keep track of someone so well. Biting my lip, I spun around and sped to the man with the sign; Kyouya had scarred me with thoughts of debt especially when it came to his services. I came to a stop in front of the escort and introduced myself, "I'm Fujioka Haruhi." I paused and added out of habit "Who do you work for?" (Law school made one enjoy questioning people)

The young man nodded and bowed, "Fujioka-san, I've been expecting you."

"I've seen that." I replied, but smiled, "So what do you want?"

This time it was his turn to grin, "Yes, uh, my boss wanted to speak with you. Please come this way to the car." He really didn't give me time to answer for he began to walk away and to avoid losing him in the masses I had no choice, but to follow. I pulled my bags with me, but he quickly backtracked and grabbed them from my hands, "I'll take this for you Ma'am."

I followed him all the way to the car parked in one of the underground parking spaces. We came to a shiny black car and I frowned, "Hold on, where are you taking me?" I demanded.

"To Mr. Suou, Ma'am."

"No way!" I stepped back. _How the heck did that moron know I was coming?_ "W-Wait! I can't go with you. I mean, I would love to see an old friend and all, but I'm a bit busy… and…. you know… I should get some rest with the jetlag and all-"

"Ma'am." I stopped speaking when the man addressed me, "Um, I was told you had to go… I really don't want to say this… I'm not supposed to, but… You **need** to go."

Still frowning, I came towards him, reaching for my bag, but he held onto it. "Why?"

"Well Mr. Suou told me I'd be fired if I didn't do my job." The man who I now noticed was younger than I was, bowed, "Please, just speak with Mr. Suou. I really don't want to lose my job."

His statement surprised me and I hesitated. The escort glanced up at me sheepishly, and then straightened. _And I thought I could relax once I got back._ I glared at him, cursed whoever was giving me such bad luck, and mulled over the idea. Tamaki wasn't someone who would say such a thing, but I had seen the affect his grandmother had on him and I pouted. I ran a hand through my short hair, which I had kept since my teenage days for practicality. "Fine… I'll go with you," I headed for the car which he opened for me, "But tell that boss of yours, if I don't get to tell him myself, to stop using his subordinates as a source of persuasion; it's not like him." After placing my baggage in the trunk, the escort did his job and escorted me to the very familiar high school of my childhood, Ouran Academy.

When we arrived, I felt like a middle school student once more, visiting Ouran for the very first time. After seven years, the school still awed me with its boast of wealth and power. I took a moment to look at the recognizable clock tower in the center of grounds even more memories flooding back. Reminiscing, I followed my escort to the office of the financial advisor of the school. I sighed, dreading the room and the man who could be in it. The escort knocked on the door and called, "Suou-Sempai, she's here."

"Good, let her in." I had no choice but to sigh for the umpteenth time, this time relieved that the voice I heard belonged to none other than Yuzuru Suou, Tamaki's father. The relief faded quickly when I entered the office and found Yuzuru Suou smiling handsomely at me, just like his son. I had forgotten that the two were not too different. "Well, the beautiful young girl I had brought into this school ten years ago has come back a woman even more beautiful than before. You are as radiant as ever Miss Haruhi Fujioka."

I bowed respectfully, "Thank you… uh…. for the welcome, Sir."

"Now, no need to be so formal, Miss Fujioka. Sit." The Suou patriarch motioned to a chair, which I took merely to be polite. He had aged over the years, his dark blond hair now streaked with gray. "I'm so happy to see you again. My son and his friends have missed you so very much. You had to leave so quickly to reach application deadlines, didn't you? Those are American Colleges for you, but I guess you understand that; you've been going to one for the passed seven years."

Nodding, I placed my hands in my lap. Yuzuru stood, walked around his desk, and leaned on it in front of me. "How was America, Fujioka?"

"It was an interesting experience, Sir."

"You just graduated law school as well, haven't you?"

"Yes. I was able to become lawyer…like my mother, Sir." Everything seemed to be moving on steadily. Nothing weird had happened yet. "I've only had a few small cases. I'm still quite mediocre, Sir."

"Oh, I see." Taking a rose out of nowhere (something I had been expecting from the beginning), Yuzuru held it out in front of me, "Oh Fujioka, you are still so young. You have years to practice and master your art, under my company no less."

I jumped up, "What!?"

Tamaki's father kept on, "Don't worry in finding work, my dear. I have made it my goal to give you a perfect position to hone your skills as an attorney. My company has a number of lawyers already and until you gain a bit more experience, you can take all our smaller cases. Most may be due to financial misunderstandings, but it will be good practice." He waved the rose in the air, dramatically.

"I-I can't! That's too hospitable, Sir. I can't take such an offer, Sir. Please!" I extended my hand out, which the older Suou grabbed.

"My dear Fujioka, you are so humble and modest. Cease these formalities," holding my hand in his, along with the thorn less rose, he kept on, "I know I've told you this before. Please… Call me Uncle."

"Suou-Sempai-" I didn't get time to speak, when I was overcome by a furious yell that I could recognize from anywhere.

"Father, what is the matter with you?" The voice was strong and I turned to the door of the office, where a livid Tamaki stood. He looked similar to how he did seven years ago, but his hair was longer and gelled back like his father's. His eyes held an authority in them; I was surprised by this new appearance. "Haruhi's here for less than an hour and what are you doing?"

"Tamaki-Sempai?" His name felt alien coming from my mouth for some strange reason, especially after seeing Tamaki act in such a way.

He started to walk towards me, still talking, "Father, I will not allow you to treat Haruhi in such a way. Stop this foolishness n-ahh!" Suddenly he fell over, tripping on the rug. He fell flat on his face in front of his father and I, finishing his sentence when he landed on his face, "n…ow!"

I watched in disbelief. _There goes the new Tamaki, still as idiotic as he was in high school._ I frowned at him and rolled my eyes. "Hello, Tamaki." His father greeted, overlooking the fact that his son had made a complete fool of himself.

Tamaki pushed himself up and began to dust himself off. The blonde finally met my gaze with his tearful puppy dog eyes, "Haruhi… I'm so happy you're back."

"Hello, Tamaki-Sempai."

Suddenly he tackled me with so much gusto we fell over. He held me in a tight embrace, his emotions getting the better of him. "Haruhi!!! Oh my God, I'm soooo very happy to seeeee you!!! Daddy has missed you soooooooooooo much!!! My daughter has returned to meeee!"

"Sempai get off me!" I had to yell. "You haven't changed at all."

"Of course, isn't that wonderful!!!!?" He continued to hold me, his head rubbing against my hair. I was surprised that he wasn't offended by my sudden disappearance.

After lying on the ground for a minute or so, while Tamaki muttered more things about having his daughter home, the Suou patriarch cleared his throat, "Eh-hem. Tamaki, are you going lie on top of Miss Haruhi for the rest of the day? If so, I could always give you two your **privacy**."

Tamaki rapidly loosened his grip and released me. He got on his hands and knees with realization, looking down at me. We had both frozen at his father's comment and stared at each other awkwardly. "Oh… I'm sorry, Haruhi." Getting up, Tamaki and I smiled, but remained silent. Tamaki readjusted his clothing, a stylish white suit, tightening his deep violet tie. "I apologize; my emotions took control for a moment."

"Um… that's fine." I answered gently. His stupidity had died down a bit in seven years. Seven years ago he would have not apologized about tackling me, but instead would've whined and pouted. This older Tamaki had a bit more control. I noticed he had a faint blush in his cheeks and I couldn't help but blush back.

Mr. Suou started to chuckle, "Well my son is clearly glad to see you Miss Fujioka. I believe we can talk about your future position as an attorney of the family at a later time."

Tamaki turned on his father, a couple locks of hair falling out of place, "Father!?" It seemed the need to call the patriarch, chairman had been outgrown. "What do you mean 'future position as an attorney of the family'?"

"You'll understand later, boy."

"Father!?"

"That's Chairman to you, Tamaki!" Ok, maybe Tamaki hadn't outgrown the term just yet. Tamaki's face fell, but strangely he didn't retreat to his corner of depression. The Chairman sighed, "Tamaki, why don't you take Miss Fujioka around town and catch up on things. I told young Kyouya about her arrival earlier this morning and I believe he may want to see his old friend as well."

"What? You told Kyouya, but not me? Father, Kyouya's known all about Haruhi coming for the last three hours, I just found out fifteen minutes ago!!!"

"Tamaki, I told Kyouya due to fellow CEO consideration. Last time I checked, you have yet to take over the company."

A few seconds moved by and instead of answering Tamaki took my hand and began to leave the room. Before we left completely, I froze and Tamaki was forced to stop. "Suou-Sempai!"

Yuzuru looked up as he had been making his way back to sit at his desk, "Yes? How may I help you, Haruhi?"

"Um, the driver who drove me here; why did you threaten to fire him if he didn't pick me up?" I had a promise to keep and I wasn't going to leave without legally protecting the poor guy who had to escort me here.

His son had appeared behind me and answered for his father, "Oh, are you talking about Hatori?"

"The young driver, yes."

"Hatori!!!" The escort returned from out of nowhere and he bowed in front of Tamaki. "Hatori, who told you'd be fired if you didn't pick Haruhi up?"

"Master Ootori, Tamaki-Sempai." Hatori answered simply. I cringed; the lawyer made the wrong accusation.

"I'm so sorry, Suou-Sempai." I declared.

"No offense taken, Miss Fujioka." I was answered.

"Which Ootori?" Tamaki kept on.

"Master Kyouya, Sir." At his statement, we all gave a uniform sigh.

_Figures it would be Kyouya._ Tamaki thanked the escort and told him to go home for the day. He then said good-bye to his father and grabbed me again. "Well, we're going to have to talk to Kyouya now, won't we?"

We walked quickly off campus, towards a shiny silver Volvo. I followed to keep my arm from being dislocated. Hatori had somehow made it to the Volvo before we did and had left my baggage by the small car. Tamaki opened the trunk of his car and released me. He picked up my bags and loaded his vehicle. A smile was showing brightly on his face. I wanted to say something to him, but I didn't do anything. "Come on. We're going to visit Okaa-san now!"

We got into the car and Tamaki began to drive. I was slightly uncomfortable, I had never seen the Suou drive before and I had a slight fear for my life. Luckily, Tamaki was quite used to steering his car. We didn't speak at first until he broke the silence, "Haruhi, my daughter, how have you been? Just think I haven't seen you in seven years." That same smile was still on his face as he turned to me during a stop light. "You just went off the day after graduation. Daddy was very worried about you."

I stared at him and responded, "I'm sorry, Tamaki. Look, I didn't want to leave so abruptly…"

"Hey, hey!" My voice faded away, when Tamaki laughed and interrupted me, "You don't need to apologize. You see, you did all of us a favor."

"Huh?" I looked at him inquisitively.

"Let's not talk about that right now. I want to know what's been going on with you. A lawyer just like your mother now, hmm?" Tamaki just continued to grin as he drove on through the busy streets of Tokyo. "Everyone has made such progress as well. Goals and dreams have all been accomplished. Kyouya was given full control of a branch of the Ohtori Corporation. He's now the CEO of a mental rehab center that uses pleasure and relaxation as cures. Mori-Sempai and Honey-Sempai co-own the Honinozuka Dojo. Mori does publicity, while Honey takes care of everything else. They have a system. The twins are doing well." He stopped there and I noticed how he didn't continue talking until a second of thought, "Hikaru is the CEO of the Hitachiin Corporation and Kaoru… helps."

Something that I had learned in psychology (a minor I had to take for law), made me want to push further on the whereabouts of the twins. Tamaki was being too vague about them; did something happen? I decided not to interrogate him, but asked instead, "And what about you? Have you made progress?"

His smirk widened, "Oh yes, when you left I made it my goal to become the CEO of my family's corporation as well. Then I could create a huge international commercial that would air all over the globe and would call out to you wherever you were and call you home to your dearest Father." Eyes sparkling during one of his illusions, he chuckled. "It's getting easier each year… well, now that grandmother isn't around anymore."

The sparkle left and sadness replaced them. I put my hand to my mouth, "Oh, I'm so sorry, Sempai. I-I didn't know. When did she die?"

The Volvo abruptly stopped as Tamaki parked violently. He turned to face me fully, "Die? Haruhi, grandmother didn't die. Father sent her to the Caribbean to retire. She hasn't said anything about me since we hired a few tall, dark, and handsome Caribbean men to take care of her. I've been free from her for the last two years!" The sadness had merely been the old Host King's dramatics in full affect. He was now happy again as if nothing was wrong. "Well, other than my grandmother who isn't dead and is captivated by tanned men; I'm doing the best I can to be ready for the day I get the company. Look, we're here."

For the longest time, I hadn't been looking at my surroundings. I was surprised to see the huge corporate building with the Ohtori seal above its large rotating doors. Two uniform clad men, who I recognized as members of the Ohtori family's private police force, stood on either side of the doors. I gaped at the massiveness of the skyscraper. "This is the Ohtori family company?!" I gasped.

"What are you talking about? This is Kyouya's Branch of the company. I think Kyouya would have killed his brothers by now if he had to work in the same building as the rest of the family. Come quickly, but tread softly, Kyouya doesn't like me coming here during business hours." The blonde chuckled and looked up at the seal, "He doesn't enjoy the fact that I call him Okaa-san in front of his employees."

I couldn't help but laugh at this. Tamaki glanced at me, surprised. Just picturing the Host King calling the Shadow King, "Mommy", in the middle of a board meeting, was hilarious to me. We laughed for a few moments and exited the car. "I-I'm sorry. I just had the funniest picture in my head with Kyouya-Sempai in it and you calling him Okaa-san."

"You want to see the real thing?" Tamaki gave me a gentle look, took my hand, and pulled me towards the building. He gave the police outside a casual hello before entering the building with me in tow. "Good Morning!!"

The ground reception was a modern color of deep blue, with black and gold accents all over the room. The receptionist sat at a black desk at the middle of the large reception area. She typed quietly on the computer; behind her on a large center base that most likely coursed up through each floor was the Ohtori seal, Gold plated with a black base. To distinguish the personal ownership of the branch, a crystal blue rose on a crystal thorny vine wound around the lower part of the Ohtori kanji. It also seemed that Kyouya left his mark through his employees' supplies and materials. When we walked up to the receptionist, I noticed several open black books and stationary around her, similar to Kyouya's beloved black notebook. Tamaki suddenly went on majestic prince mode and leaned against the counter gently.

"Good Morning, Yoko. You look absolutely stunning today." He gave her his most handsome smile that any woman would melt under. On her desk, I noticed the time. My morning had been wasted meeting the Suous and it was 1:30 in the afternoon.

"Hey, Tamaki-Sempai." I called.

"It is no longer morning Mr. Suou, Sir." The receptionist looked up and glanced coldly at Tamaki and then at me. She readjusted her glasses and tugged at her matching blue suit jacket. The receptionist had her black hair in an efficient yet stylish bun, and was clearly not fazed by Tamaki's greeting. "Ohtori-sama does not wish to see you during business hours, Mr. Suou, Sir. Please return after six o' clock, thank you." With this, she returned to her work.

"Aww, now Yoko. Don't be indifferent. A classmate from high school came to visit with me. Let us in, please?" He leaned in closer and whispered, "I'll make it worth your while."

There was a moment's pause, "No."

Tamaki pulled back, "Pllleeeaaassseee! Yoko, I know my charm doesn't work on you, but couldn't you do us this little favor, for Kyouya's dear friend from high school?" He grabbed me by the shoulders and pushed me in front of the girl.

She glanced at me over the top of her spectacles and looked me over. I wasn't wearing anything gender disorienting, so she could tell that I was female. The look in her eyes was one I had seen too many times before, in the eyes of girls that took part in the host club and had their bouts of jealousy. The emotion shown as bright as day; she was jealously suspicious of my existence. I smiled politely, "You're jealous, aren't you? Don't worry. I fully understand your feelings for Kyouya-Sempai. I swear to you, we are only friends."

Yoko lifted her head fully this time to gaze at me. Her surprise supported my statement along with the tinge of red across her cheeks. She glared at me but did not speak, "He chose you because Tamaki has no effect on you whatsoever." I grabbed the blonde by the tie, "You don't need to worry about this one pissing Kyouya-Sempai off. I'll keep his mouth shut, so may we go say a quick hello?"

"Haruhi-ii!" I tightened his tie considerably to keep him quiet. He and the other boys were going to notice I learned a thing or two from my female American classmates, who were much more independent than any Japanese woman I knew.

"Fine." Yoko gave a quiet and controlled reply. She picked up the reception phone and called the office upstairs. I heard the phone ring a few times, before Yoko pressed the speaker phone button. I released Tamaki, who loosened his tie for air. We instantly heard Kyouya's voice once the ringing died down. He had picked up the phone, but his mind was on something else for he was speaking to someone, it seemed.

"Are you regretting? I don't believe you'd be dreaming about that night if you weren't regretting about making this decision." The Third Ohtori son's familiar calm tone escaped the speakers. No one spoke.

"I'm not regretting. I would never regret the decisions I've made." I felt my eyes widen when I heard the younger Hitachiin twin, Kaoru respond. "I did what I had to do."

"I know, but we all know perfectly well that you allowed them to kiss that night. In your dream you tried to stop them. It seems straightforward to make the assumption that you are regretting how your life turned out, and in your dream you tried to avoid having to take the responsibility of fa..." Tamaki who stood beside me suddenly tensed. I looked up at his face, now grave.

"Look! I'm not regretting!! I just told you I had a dream of that night during the birthday party when the two kissed. That's all."

"That same kiss led to your current predicament."

"Stop. Stop it. I'm not going to have you tell me I subconsciously regret taking Ko-"

"Okaaaaaaaaaaaaa-saaaaaaaaaaaaaaan!!!!!!" I jumped as Tamaki abruptly interrupted the conversation. "Heeeeeellllooooo!!!!"

"Tamaki!" I heard the two voices yell in surprise.

"We were calling and you didn't say anything. Why did you pick up and not greet me?" Whining, Tamaki pouted, "I want to come up. Please!?"

Kyouya swiftly answered out of habit, "No… How much did you hear, Tamaki?"

"Our daughter has come back, Okaa-saan!! She's here with me right now, listening to your lovely voice through the speaker phone."

There was a long silence. I was confident that Tamaki had interrupted on purpose to stop the conversation, whatever it was about. He had even stopped Kyouya from saying more by telling him of my presence. I gave Tamaki a hard look, but he avoided my eyes by looking at the phone.

"Just… her… in…She's…know…enough to…wonder." Kaoru's voice came out in a careful whisper but we couldn't hear his words well.

With a sigh, Kyouya did as he was told, "Welcome back Haruhi. Why don't you and that moron come upstairs so we don't have to talk over this speaker?" It was just like Kyouya to be able to act calm during stressing situations. "Yoko, hang up please."

"Yes, Sir." The receptionist did as ordered. Before she could say anything, Tamaki was heading for the elevator.

We stood in the elevator in silence, but the questions were much too strong to control my tongue. "Would you like to tell me what that was about Tamaki?"

"What do you mean?"

"Don't play innocent, seven years of law school, remember?"

The Suou gazed at me, with a pained expression. "It's complicated, Haruhi… I think it'd be best if you just find out as time goes on."

"And why is that?" I demanded.

"It's not my fight Haruhi… I can't get involved, this time."

"Tamaki?" I needed to change my strategy. The Host King had gotten smarter and less irrational after seven years. He was still idiotic in some ways, but with this 'predicament' that Kyouya had mentioned, Tamaki had changed into a different (smarter) person. "Why did I hear Kaoru's voice over the speaker?"

He was quiet, trying to burn time, as the elevator was reaching the 21st floor, Kyouya's office. Tamaki couldn't keep quiet long enough. "Haruhi… For most wealthy families (aristocratic families like that of Ouran), there are a few prerequisites that a young man needs to have before being able to take control over his father's company. Those prerequisites are education, experience, and a wife." The elevator came to a halt and the doors slid open, revealing a long hallway, leading to the office door. We exited the elevator and began walking towards the office, "Education and experience are the easier things to obtain, but a wife takes time and effort. Rich people are selfish; they don't enjoy having to wait for that last item. Instead of allowing the eldest son to choose his wife, he is forced into whatever marriage that can give his family's company an advantage in the business world. It sounds stupid, but even now, my father is waiting to give me the Suou name until after I choose a wife." He glanced at me and paused for breath.

"The eldest son has the hardest time with these prerequisites being that the final item is forced upon him the traditional way, by arrangement. The younger brothers, those like Kyouya… and Kaoru aren't pushed as hard. Wait-What was your question again? Haha..." We stopped in front of Kyouya office and turned to look at each other. I knew for sure now that I had missed a large occurrence. Tamaki didn't say more about the prerequisites, but before opening the door, he grabbed me and pulled me into a close embrace. His voice suddenly dropping to low whisper, "I'm sorry I can't tell you what's going on with our family. The only thing I can say to you now is, don't, don't leave us again. I don't know what we'll do if you left us. I don't know what'll happen if you disappeared again. Please, don't leave us Haruhi. You left us once, and things fell apart. Most of us were able rebuild our lives, but not all of us."

Pulling away, Tamaki gave me a smile to wash away his last words. He straightened and declared, "Okaa-san, our daughter's returned to us." The blonde grabbed the door and opened it revealing the third son of the Ohtori family.

I gasped in surprise when my eyes registered the sight before me.

I don't know what shocked me more. The fact that Kyouya was gently smiling (not in a calculating sense) as he worked; the fact that at a small desk at the corner of the same room, Kaoru was working diligently alone; or the fact that in Kyouya's lap sat a little boy with black hair and golden eyes, wearing the Shadow king's glasses, and sitting in Kaoru's lap was the boy's identical twin, who held different pieces of fabric to the sketches Kaoru was working on.

Kyouya Ohtori looked up and his smirk widened. His cool voice floated into the room, "Welcome Back Haruhi Fujioka. It's been a while."

Kaoru Hitachiin's voice followed his, "Well, well, long time no see. **I'm** glad you're back."

The children in the room watched me with matching gazes. I opened my lips to greet them, but my eyes fell upon Kaoru and lips parted to say, "Kaoru… where's Hikaru?"

* * *

End... for now! There you have it. A very long Chapter. I hoped you all enjoyed reading this. Enjoy your small cliffhanger.

**REMEMBER TO REVIEW!!!** Click the link below and leave a comment!! PLEASE!!

Next Time: So many questions-so little time! Will Haruhi get the answers she desires? How will she react when the new Hitachiin twins are introduced? Oh where's Mori and Honey!?? Stay Tuned!


	3. A Game of Twenty Questions, Anyone?

Welcome back, everyone. How are you all doing? I hope life's been treating you well for my own has been nothing but hectic. I'm happy everyone is enjoying the story; I really love the reviews! Now let's just get to the chapter, shall we?

**Last Time:** Haruhi has returned to Japan and has been met with a number of confusing predicaments. The host club she left behind isn't as close as it used to be. She can easily tell when she walks in on a very lonely Kaoru. What's going on and where is everyone? Also, who are the new twins that seem so comfortable with Kaoru and the Shadow King?

Disclaimer: I do not and have never owned OHSHC. I wish I did, but then I wouldn't be here if that was the case.

Title: It Takes Two to Play the Game

Author: Yuzume Mikien (Whoo I'm back)

Pairings: I don't have a straight line up yet, but… TamakixHaruhi, hinted HikaruxHaruhi, HikaruxOC, HoneyxOC, hopefully other pairings will form after a while.

Rating: Pg-13 to M, just to be safe.

Warnings: Language, and suggestive themes, but for now, keeping the content at a safe PG-13.

Genre: Drama, Anguish

**PLEASE REVIEW** I love reviews and what you guys think. If you have any ideas for the storyline I'm always open for more. Oh… please don't flame. Constructively criticize, but don't flame.

Also, please share this fanfic to your friends if they enjoy Ouran as well. I don't want to leave anyone as I mold this drama into something for everyone.

Let's begin, shall we?

**BIG NOTE**: Words written in _"Italics"_ ARE THOUGHTS.

WORDS IN **"Bold"** ARE SENTENCES SPOKEN IN ENGLISH

THERE IS SOME SPANISH SPOKEN IN HERE AND EVENTUALLY FRENCH. I'M NOT FLUENT IN EITHER.

I WILL BE ADDING SOME SPANISH AND FRENCH.

MYSELF, WHO IS CURRENTLY TAKING A SPANISH CLASS, WILL WRITE THE SPANISH SENTENCES.

THE FRENCH SENTENCES I WILL TAKE FROM THE INTERNET.

PLEASE DO NOT ATTACK ME FOR THE MISUSE OF LANGUAGE. I MERELY USE THEM TO COINCIDE WITH THE STORY.

* * *

Chapter Two: A Game of Twenty Questions, Anyone?

Normal POV

"Kaoru… where's Hikaru?" The question spilled into the large office. It floated around for seconds, but no answer came to be.

Silence filled the room after Haruhi queried on the older twin's location. She glanced around from face to face in the area. Her eyes falling upon said twin's younger doppelganger, moving to gaze at the third son of the Ohtori family, taking a second to glance at the two identical three year old boys, and then returning to look at the Hitachiin. She gave him a worried gaze, but his lips did not part to answer.

Haruhi couldn't help but feel uncomfortably irritable. Her expectations were to see the Host Club from her teenage years and reminisce, but instead of finding each group member after seven years, she was now looking at one half of the Hitachiin pair. Further queries bounced around in her mind and she had to control herself from questioning more than necessary. The young woman had wanted a reunion, but had received a situation that her training as an attorney told her, yearned for an interrogation. Opening her mouth to add, she stopped before executing the action when Tamaki came to her side.

"Good Morning, Okaa-san! How are you doing this wonderful afternoon? Look at how our daughter has grown up into such a beautiful woman!" The blonde exclaimed with enthusiasm, but Haruhi noticed the sight of one of his hands, balled into a fist in his pocket. Peculiar.

'Okaa-san' blinked to escape the envelope of silence that had suffocated the room. He cleared his throat, "Yes, I see that, Tamaki." He answered this simply then turned his attention in the girl's direction, "You have an interesting way of starting a conversation with two men you haven't seen in seven years, Haruhi."

The addressed female froze and bowed. This time she held her tongue and straightened saying, "I'm so sorry. I couldn't help myself. It's just the last time I saw all of you Kaoru and-"

"After seven long years, changes happen, Haruhi. I apologize for his absence, but it can't be helped." The red head broke from the prison of silence just in time to overtake her statement. "I'm sure he'd be just as happy as I am now, once he hears of your return." A polite smile appeared on the man's face as he stood from his seat at the desk in the far corner of the room, the small boy on his lap slipping off to stand close to his father.

Gaze following Kaoru, Haruhi had an extremely strong urge to ask him why such a matter "Could not be helped." Too many things were happening at once and she had to tackle each occurrence one by one. Everyone was acting strangely she knew that much was for sure.

"I agree with Kaoru. We've all missed you considerably. Mori and Honey are flying into Tokyo from Hong Kong right now, but I made sure to inform them of your arrival. They were more than elated at the news." The Ohtori son spoke coolly. His eyes moving to the Suou beside her, he took a second to adjust his stare. Taking the pair of spectacles from the twin of the boy who stood in Kaoru's shadow, Kyouya cleared his throat, led the small boy off his lap, and returned to his conversation, "There is no prominent necessity to fear for Hikaru's safety at the moment."

Listening, Haruhi followed the second child with her eyes, who rushed to his brother's side, semi-hidden by their parent's form. She looked back at Kyouya, whose words did not make her feel at ease. Her suspicions were growing greater. "So… where **is** Hikaru?" She stressed, needing further explanation.

The three men were quiet. There was no way they could sidestep the inevitable, especially from the stubborn female. With a sigh, Kyouya answered in the most general way possible, "Europe."

Eyes widening, Haruhi pulled back surprised. Tamaki did not let her continue, grabbing her in a huge dramatic hug that only the ex-Host King could pull off. He, himself, was aware of the gravity of the situation and it was his job to alleviate the somber moment. Squealing, he abruptly yelled, "Oh, Kyouya, isn't she just adorable? I mean, she's a lawyer now, just like her mother. Isn't that just touching? Our daughter has grown up so fast. Daddy is soooo proud of youuuuuu!"

"A lawyer, eh?" Smirking, the Shadow King said no more.

"How was the United States? You were accepted into Harvard Law, am I right?" Kaoru added, the same polite smile had continued to brighten his handsome features.

Haruhi fought against Tamaki's strong hold, yelling angry protests at him. The blonde merely kept on muttering emotional remarks, unbeknownst to the young woman that she was slowly being led off topic.

Between attempts to loosen Tamaki's grip, Haruhi answered, "It wasn't too bad. Let go, Tamaki-Sempai! The United States is quite a bit similar to Japan, but it has its differences too. Tamaki-Sempai!"

"I'm glad that you were able to make that dream of yours a reality." The Hitachiin kept on with the new subject of conversation. His hands fell lightly on the heads of Kohaku and Keisuke, who stood on each side of his body, trying to hide from view by being slightly hidden by his form. "Harvard, Ouran Academy- you have quite a resume."

"Thanks- You know what, Tamaki-Sempai!!?"

"Yes, my dearest daughter. What can Daddy do for you?" Tamaki replied happily. She gave him a glare that he did not react to and the blonde kept squeezing her. Haruhi turned to glance at Kyouya who watched with amusement and Kaoru who observed silently; neither of the men stepped forward to help her.

Sighing, Haruhi rolled her eyes and hissed, "I'm not going to talk to you again for another year if you don't let go of me Tamaki-Sempai!" As these were the magic words, Tamaki jumped off the brunette and stood back. Straightening, Haruhi began to dust herself off, "That's better," she finished calmly.

From a few feet away, Tamaki stared back with cautious surprise. Faint chuckles echoed from the other two men in the room, "But Haruhi, Daddy only wants to congratulate you on your accomplishments." The Suou squeaked.

"How can I tell you about the last seven years if I can't even breathe, Tamaki-Sempai." Haruhi retorted, her attention falling upon Kaoru again she returned to their conversation about her resume, "Thanks for the compliment Kaoru, but I know for sure that this is all mere luck on my part. I'm grateful though, you can't get into any place better than Harvard."

"I agree." Kaoru had smiled gently at her for quite a time now and Haruhi couldn't help but notice the difference in the solitary twin. He was a couple inches taller, now, but instead of aging seven years, he seemed to have aged a good twenty. Kaoru's appearance boasted exhaustion beyond physical aspects. His eyes and the dark rings that weighed them down were merely one of the traits that he had gained over the seven years Haruhi had not seen him. The twenty-four year old man, was paler as well, either that or he had an air of fragility about him that had never been there before. Maybe it was due to the fact that the 'dominant' Hikaru wasn't around or maybe it was due to the boys that stood shyly behind him. Kaoru had changed quite a bit since she had last spoken to him; more so than any of the ex-hosts she had met.

Another awkward silence filled the room, as the attempt to avoid the topic of Hikaru failed miserably. Noticing the extent of changes on the younger Hitachiin, Haruhi returned to her path of questions of the other twin's whereabouts. "So… why's Hikaru in Europe?"

Before anyone could answer, Tamaki came out again, "Haruhi…. Haruhi. My daughter, why do you keep asking about that Hikaru fellow? Did you not want to ask about your escort Hatori and how Kyouya treats him employees?"

Once more, the conversation's topic was thrown up in the air and Haruhi knew it. She was becoming a bit more irritable about the continued attempts to change the subject of the talk. What were they hiding and why? She frowned and showed her defiance on speaking about a different matter, "Look, I just want ans-"

"What about Hatori, Haruhi?" Black eyes abruptly bore deep into Haruhi's form and she quickly stopped speaking. Kyouya's gaze was one of a merciless 'King' awaiting a complaint about his subject so as to have a reason to fire the poor lad. "Did he do something undesirable?"

Haruhi swallowed. It couldn't be helped, the Shadow King now was aware of a problem with his business employees and it would be dangerous to try steering the conversation in Hikaru's direction again. This time, the Ohtori's full attention was on Haruhi; no longer were his fingers flying across his keyboard. From the corner of her view, Haruhi noticed the small boys cower further behind the red headed twin, standing feet away from the already brooding CEO. "No."

"What did he do then?" Kyouya interrogated.

"What did you do?" Haruhi responded. She stepped forward; a sudden wave of confidence gained from law school filling her form. "The young man that you had escort me from the airport to Ouran told me that you would fire him if he didn't do his job. What's more, he first told me that it was Yuzuru Suou who had threatened him and then later on confessed it was you. Personally, I didn't want to return to Japan and hear that one of my old friends from high school was treating his employees terribly and making them lie about their orders and the boss himself to save his sorry hide."

It took a few seconds for the words to register in anyone's mind. Hatori had first said it had been the Suou's order and then took the statement back and replaced it with the Ohtori's order. It was surprising that the brunette had caught such an inconsistency in the escort's words. The female attorney stood her ground with the full intent in getting the truth behind Kyouya's actions. After another minute, the CEO began to laugh, throwing everyone off guard.

"Okaa-san, I don't think it's time for you to be laughing." Tamaki muttered carefully, "I think Haruhi is serious."

"I AM serious, Tamaki!" The girl narrowed her stare, "Kyouya-Sempai, you're not one to be so heartless, especially with Tamaki-Sempai nearby."

Still chuckling, Kyouya nodded. He removed his glasses and wiped his eyes. A wide, uncharacteristic grin was plastered upon his face, but it was one hundred percent genuine. "You're correct. You are right, Haruhi. I would never do something like that unless this imbecile was halfway around the world for a few years- similar to yourself. You are a very talented lawyer to have noticed such a small discrepancy." He motioned to Tamaki, who stared back in utter confusion.

Haruhi could only stare back as well, "Wait, you knew?" She couldn't understand how the Ohtori could have known. Slowly it dawned upon her; she was talking to the Shadow King, the man who could plan anything and everything. "You planned all this!?"

Nodding, Kyouya gazed at the brunette proudly, "When I learned that you would return, I had the sudden notion to assess the extent of your education in the States. Hatori is a close friend of my sister's. He's an aspiring actor but my sister wanted me to hire him for the sake of allowing him to have a concrete occupation that paid the bills while he searched for his 'big break' of sorts. I called him earlier this morning and asked him to escort you as an oppressed laborer character; I see he fit the part perfectly."

"Kyouya…" Haruhi turned to the next speaker, Kaoru, who spoke after being silent for most of the subject. Once again she noticed how subdued the young male seemed to be without an energetic mirror image nearby. "You didn't need to do that. Was he the one who planned to place the blame on you and Suou-sama? Or was that merely another part of your plan?"

The female attorney bobbed her head in agreement. "Kyouya-Sempai, what gives you the right to test me?"

The raven haired twenty-five year old sighed, "I deeply apologize then. I merely wanted to see if Haruhi –you- could reach my high expectations. She is an attorney, which means she will need clients. I desired only to test her capabilities." The older man moved his stare to the golden-eyed boy nearby, "Oh, it was Hatori's idea to create such a discrepancy. I told him to do something unusual along with the oppressed act he gave. He did his job a bit too well, I may need to give him a bonus for that."

"I wouldn't have expected anything else… Looks like I am home." Throwing her hands up in the air, Haruhi shook her head. "I was hoping for a normal life in Japan, but I nearly forgot about the conspiracies, the drama, and the insane rich people I left behind. This is just wonderful."

"Well, at least your life won't be too uneventful. Is that right, Haruhi?" Tamaki stepped forward and wrapped his arms around the shorter human. This time he had learned his lesson and made sure to only hold Haruhi lightly. "My adorable little daughter; I bet you missed us all. How do you feel with **Mommy, Daddy, and little brother** nearby?" He said the family terminology in English for effect.

There was a second pause, "I am overcome by extreme happiness." Sarcasm dripped from the statement as it exited Haruhi's lips. She let out a long breath. Another extended silence filled the room as the three men struggled to come up with a third or fourth distraction. Unfortunately, Haruhi allowed her irritation to show in her next attempt to know a little bit more about Hikaru's whereabouts. "So continuing on with Hikaru. Why is he not here? An answer would suffice, Kyouya-Sempai-?"

The Ohtori stiffened considerably.

"Tamaki-Sempai-?" She continued.

The Suou chuckled uncomfortably.

"Kaoru…?" Haruhi finished.

The Hitachiin clenched his fists this time, just as Tamaki had done at the beginning of the conversation. After a moment, his hands loosened and his emotionless face rearranged itself into an expression of placidness. "Haruhi-"

"Why don't you stop using the Sempai endings to our names? Tamaki and I are no longer your older schoolmates. You can simply call us by casual terms." Kyouya overtook the twin swiftly.

Finally, the normally calm brunette snapped, "OK, I get it! If you can't talk about Hikaru because he's some type of taboo or something; can't you guys just tell me?! Stop changing the subject every time I ask! I'm not stupid. I can clearly notice when something's wrong with Hikaru when everyone else seems to be healthy and alive! Kaoru, what the heck is wrong with a simple question about your bro-"

"Enough Haruhi!"

Haruhi POV

I froze. The voice coming from the only blonde in the room and the grip around me tightening, my eyes moved from Kaoru's face to Tamaki's suddenly angry one. I had never seen his violet eyes show such an emotion before and it quickly shut me up. The façade of the dramatic Host King had fallen to be replaced with the twenty-five year old heir to the Suou Corporation. He released me and pulled back. His hand ran through his gelled hair to flatten it and bring the air of seriousness back into his form. I stared cautiously; seven years had altered him even more than I had thought. For a second, I even felt uncomfortable being within such proximity of him.

"T-Tamaki?" I was able to voice, but it came out as a whisper to my dismay.

My tone caused Tamaki's expression to soften ever so slightly. We stared into each other's eyes for the longest time and I began to slowly notice how his gaze held a message beyond his abrupt disapproval of my continued demands about Hikaru. I couldn't read his expression in its entirety, but I could tell he was warning me of a fine line I wasn't supposed to cross.

"Curiosity killed the cat and blinded the mice, Haruhi." I turned to look at Kyouya, whose own voice had dropped dangerously. I couldn't help but shiver involuntarily with two cold gazes directed on my form. This had never happened before. Had I just reached the end of both Tamaki and Kyouya's patiences?

Opening my mouth, I made my way to say something to apologize for whatever offense I had made, but something happened that threw me further off guard.

Two small voices added themselves to the dialogue.

"Papa, quien es la mujer aquí? Porque ella tiene muchas preguntas se trata de Hikaru? Quien es Hikaru?" The twin boys who had stood so silently behind Kaoru spoke out in perfect Spanish. I felt my eyes widen, expecting the black haired pair to speak the native tongue of the country. What was more surprising was when their 'Papa' answered fluently back.

"Shh, ella fue mi amiga de colegio. Es la amiga de Tio Tamaki y Tio Kyouya tambien." Kaoru looked down at the children who had pulled away slightly from his body. His full attention fell upon the two as he knelt down between the young doppelgangers. I stared, transfixed at the adoration that took over his features. Kaoru smiled endearingly; his expression one that only a father could give.

"Pero, quien es Hikaru?" The boys asked again. I had no idea what they were saying, but I could hear the name Hikaru in their sentences. Strangely, there was no recognition in the boys' gazes. My eyes continued to grow in size; they were questioning Kaoru about the identity of the man I had been stubbornly asking about!

"Nadie." Kaoru replied simply while placing his hands gently on the twins' heads and tousling his children's hair.

_They don't even know who their Uncle is?_

It seemed I was the only person in the room to have found this presentation disorienting. My eyes fell upon Tamaki and Kyouya, but their expressions shared a simple and kind happiness as they watched the three. The twins had identical black colored hair and memorizing gold eyes. They looked no older than four or five, and the gaze they gave their father appeared identical to that of their father and his twin's expression a generation before. For some reason, it was only by looking deep into their familiar stares that realization hit me. Kaoru was a father. These boys were his children. I had returned after seven years and the members of the host club had already begun having children. I gasped, "Oh my…"

This brought everyone in the room to look at me now. I tried to calm myself down. _What in the world? First Hikaru and now this? Why are they speaking Spanish?_ "Kaoru… um… are these boys your…?"

Kaoru blinked for a moment and realized the fact of my absence as well. "Ay! Lo siento! Yo se olvidé que tu no estuve aquí!" He blinked again and noticed my returned lost gaze. "Oh, 'I'm so sorry'! I mean 'I forgot you had not been here'. I mean- uh-"

The Hitachiin stood up and pushed his boys forward a little. "I apologize. I don't recall introducing you. Haruhi, meet Kohaku and Keisuke." The atmosphere in the room had suddenly changed; all the anger had subsided. Kaoru held a slight blush of embarrassment on his cheeks. He glanced down at the kids in front of him now, "Kohaku, Keisuke conoce su Tia Haruhi Fujioka."

A pair of gold orbs stared at me with the same blank expression. Kaoru's sons looked extremely like the Ohtori who sat at his desk yards away, but it was the younger Hitachiin twin who was fully responsible for the children. "Wait, so they are your sons?" I was able to utter helplessly.

Kaoru nodded, "Si, I mean 'Yes'."

"But I swear, they look just like Kyouya!"

"A complicated coincidence." The said CEO retorted quickly. I gave him a look before returning my gaze to the twins before me.

"More like a complicated occurrence, Okaa-san." Tamaki added just as swiftly. The blonde had calmed down and he placed his hands on my shoulders, "Surprising is it not? Don't worry, Haruhi, Kaoru isn't the only one with children; Honey and Mori do too."

"Yeah, but-"

"Besides, out of the seven of us, I think Kyouya would be the last of us who would get laid, don't you?" The Suou continued.

"You're pushing your stay, Otou-san." I felt Tamaki shiver as Kyouya used the term harshly more than endearingly.

Before I could say more, Kaoru motioned the boys towards me and I found myself standing before a pair of identical twins. They were not looking at me happily.

There was a small staring contest between the three of us and I was finally able to get my lips to move, "Hello." I said without hiding the discomfort in my voice.

At my greeting, the pair of gazes abruptly changed from the emotionless to mischievous dislike. I recognized the look the moment the two broke their stare with me to give each other a knowing glance. They were already scheming so it was clear that the apples didn't fall too far from the tree with these boys. "Hola, como está? Se llama Haruhi, si? Que es, un hombre o una mujer?"

"What?" I asked when the boys began to speak.

I heard a sigh from afar, "Boys, in English, Japanese, or French please." Kaoru shook his head apologetically and continued in Japanese, "I'm sorry Haruhi. They don't mean to be rude. They're shy when meeting new people. Boys, apologize to Haruhi for questioning her gender please."

"They just did what!?" I demanded in surprise. This wasn't fair; I didn't understand anything the children were saying. In the US I had heard the language of Spanish before, but I had only learned to say that I didn't understand Spanish. _Did Kaoru just ask them to speak in English, Japanese, or French? What type of children would know four languages!?_

Kyouya chuckled and responded in the place of Kaoru, "Kohaku and Keisuke are just as troublesome as the Hitachiins of the previous generation. They're a bit too young for the brotherly love act, but in a few years who knows? Their personas are individualistically stronger than that of their father and his counterpart. I assume you'll learn this in due time- Oh they just asked you, if you are 'a man or a woman'."

Kaoru turned, "Que tal? Comprendes mucho Kyouya? Muy bien! Neccesito lo aprender mas. Mas tarde puedes hablar conmigo y con los hijos." His small grin grew as he spoke to the CEO. I watched them in utter shock. _Did I move to Japan, or Spain?_

"Don't pay them much mind Haruhi. Kohaku and Keisuke's mother was Venazuelan, she taught Kaoru Spanish and he passed it on to the boys and Kyouya." Tamaki explained softly, "Kaoru's a linguist/translator who majors in international literature. Just think; he's taught this pair of adorable little devils four different languages before their fourth birthday. I'm still as lost as ever with Spanish and can't even tell Russian and Greek apart."

Tamaki released me and knelt down to the boys' level. He suddenly scooped them both up and held them in a tight hug. I stared helplessly as the blonde held the two who calmly pulled their arms out of his hold and watched me from over the Suou's shoulder. They still held the expression of dislike towards me and I felt extremely uncomfortable. "How have you been my delightful little bundles of joy? Second Otou-san's missed you sooooo muuuuuch toooo! You haven't come by and visited Antoinette and me in sooooooooooooo long! Otou-san's missed you almost as much as he did your Haruhi Oba-chan!!!!"

_Haruhi Oba-chan… Looks like I've been promoted from daughter to aunt._ I continued to stare at the pair golden gazes, which remained in my direction. Ignoring the squeals of their 'Second Otou-san', the new Hitachiin twins kept their eyes on me. They were waiting to do something and I knew it wasn't something good. I wanted to give a good impression and state that we had an annoying man who thought that he was our father when we clearly knew we had one nearby, but the look Kohaku and Keisuke gave me caused me to doubt myself. Instead, I moved my attention on Kaoru who had traveled closer to Kyouya, and was sitting on the CEO's desk. Black and golden gazes meeting mine, I motioned to the squealing blonde and unusually calm twins. Kaoru and Kyouya nodded as if comprehending my confusion.

"We surely have something in common; being awfully calm when Tamaki goes on one of his rants. Is that right, boys?" I started weakly. At this, Tamaki let the pair go and returned to my side.

"Aren't they simply adorable!!!? Haruhi, when I get married and have children, they're going to be this adorable and cute and they'll call me Daddy and…"

"Fujioka-San." Two similar voices from identical mouths interrupted Tamaki's list (this time in fluent Japanese). "Would you like to play a game?"

_Why does that question bring back so many memories?_ I thought and blinked helplessly. From my peripheral, I caught the sight of the twin's father, who had taken a second to speak quietly with the Ohtori, abruptly return his attention in our direction. His eyes held as much recognition as mine had. "A game?"

"You want us…" One twin began.

And the other twin finished, "… to like you, right?"

Their gold eyes flashed naughtily and they glanced at each other before standing in close proximity to each other. I had first caught the resemblance between the red haired twins of my high school days and the black haired twins that stood before me, but the similarity was ridiculous. This wasn't a 'like father like sons moment,' this was a 'daddy's little clones moment.'

"You'll have to play…"

"…if you want us to call you Oba-chan."

I laughed awkwardly, "Aren't you two something? I think we may have started off on the wrong foot. Let's just start from beginning shall we? Hi, I'm Haruhi Fujioka. Would you like to be friends?" The two boys were mere children so starting off with a simple question of friendship was a better choice than getting into a Hitachiin twin game.

"Which one of us are you talking to?" Both suddenly said in unison.

"Well, I'm talking to the both of you." I corrected myself.

One of the twins chuckled, "There's nobody here named 'the both of you'."

I opened my mouth to answer, but my eyes caught Kaoru push himself off Kyouya's desk quickly, grave recognition filling his features. He stepped in our direction, but Kyouya grabbed his arm and held him in place. Kohaku and Keisuke failed to notice as their backs were turned. Kaoru's own mouth was ready to speak, but a glare from the older male at his desk kept his mouth mute. Kyouya looked to me and nodded, silently telling me to continue.

"Ok, I'm speaking to Kohaku and Keisuke." I continued on plainly. What was Kaoru doing?

"Oh really." The large golden eyes sparkled innocently. "Which of us is Keisuke and which of us is Kohaku? Can you tell?"

The final three words of their sentences caused a sudden realization to fill the room. They were playing 'that' game. They wanted me to guess who was who. _Great…_Hopefully they weren't old enough to get into an argument if I did guess them right. Unfortunately the new problem was I barely knew this new pair of twins.

"If you can't then we won't …"

"… need to like you."

Kaoru made it so that the two parted their hair differently, but other than that their clothes were identically matching tops, blazers, and corduroy jeans. There were only slight differences, but they weren't large or noticeable. And if I just knew each of their personalities, the game would have been easier.

"Can I ask a question first?" I queried gently.

The two nodded, "Sure, but if you lose after we answer your question then we won't…"

"…let Tama-Oji-sama call us his little bundles of joy or anything else anymore."

"He'll just be our normal Tama-Oji-sama. He can't be 'Second Daddy.'" Kohaku and Keisuke finished off in unison. There was a gasp from behind me as Tamaki took this condition as an excuse to go to the corner of the room and cry his eyes out with several boxes of Kleenex. _There goes the Tamaki from High School_.

"Fine." Kaoru shook his head at my acceptance, but Kyouya urged me on with his gaze. "My question is which one of you is older, Kohaku or Keisuke?"

Looking at each other and then returning to me, they uniformly answered, "Kohaku."

I accepted this calmly and stared at them for a few seconds. My question gave me enough information to answer. The twins were just like Kaoru and Hikaru had been. _Kohaku is the dominant twin then. Which means… they're too young to notice that the older twin speaks first in all their split sentences._ I squatted down to their level. "Ok, you're Kohaku." I pointed to the right twin whose hair was split on the right, just as Hikaru's had been. I then turned to the left twin whose hair was split to the left like his father. "And you are Keisuke."

Strangely, I never received an answer. The two stared at me for the longest time, but didn't say a word as to if I had won or lost. After a minute, I questioned, "I'm sorry did I get it wrong?"

Kyouya finally released his grip on Kaoru's arm and the Hitachiin strolled towards us. He knelt down as well so that we were face to face, "Congratulations, Haruhi. You just won the 'Which one is Kohaku' game." Smiling he took hold of the twins in each arm and hugged them, "I apologize, but they never did plan that far into the game."

"That's our Haruhi… as perceptive as ever. Did I not tell you, Kaoru?" Kyouya cheered calmly.

"Was it a challenge?" The father asked.

"Well yeah, but-"

"HARUHIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!!!!!!!! I AM SOOOOOOOOO HAPPYYYYYY! YOU HAVE MADE ME THE HAPPIEST MAN ALIVEEEEEEE!!" Out of nowhere the bipolar Suou tackled me over, filled with pure excitement. "I'M SECOND DADDY AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!"

I was crushed momentarily by his weight, "You're welcome, Tamaki. Get off me!!!"

The other two men in the room began to laugh. After a moment I couldn't help but join in. I was home with my close friends after seven long years. For a few minutes we enjoyed each other's presences until:

"She cheated!" The twin, I now knew as Kohaku, declared. Kaoru gave his son a stern look, but it was ignored. "Otou-san, she cheated!"

"Haku…" The second twin grabbed his brother's arm, "Don't say that. That's mean!" The charade was up, and the two's strong personalities came screaming out.

"I don't care. Otou-san, Papa, Daddy!! She cheated!" The boy's whole body was ready to throw a tantrum. I couldn't help but notice the resemblance the older boy had to the temper of his father's older brother. "She can't win the game so easily. Even Tama-Oji-sama and Kyouya-Oji-sama can't even tell us apart. Why can she?! She cheated!"

Kaoru sighed and rolled his eyes. He picked the angry boy up in his arms, while the younger twin held onto his pant leg. "Kohaku, enough! Stop it Kohaku!" Kaoru ordered firmly. He glanced at me, "I'm so sorry. Kohaku is difficult with these types of things."

"Say sorry to Oba-chan now, Haku!" Keisuke squeaked from behind his father.

"No!" The little boy in Kaoru's arms refused. I felt guilty when I caught sight of the tears in his eyes. "I don't want to!"

Kaoru pressed the boy's head against his shoulder muttering inaudible words in the boy's ear. Kyouya had returned to typing plainly on his keyboard as if a three year old hadn't just exploded in tears in his office. A hand gently fell upon my own shoulder as I found mature Tamaki at my side. He laughed quietly at the sight before him. "Did I do something wrong?" I asked for anyone to answer me.

Tamaki shook his head, "No. It's all right. They're still babies. They don't know what's right or wrong yet." If this had happened during our high school days, the Host King would have gone berserk, but he was extremely calm. Once again I was the only one who felt uncomfortable.

"Shhhh… Hush, hijo. Kyouya, que hora es?" Kaoru began to speak in Spanish again.

Black eyes glancing up for a second, the CEO replied, "Quarter to four."

Sighing tiredly, Kaoru declared, "Siesta. We missed 'naptime'." Gaze falling on me, Kaoru apologized for what seemed to be the seventh time that day. "I'm sorry, Haruhi. They're both in need of a nap."

Kaoru was a father. My mind was still trying to grasp it. This whole kicking, screaming, yelling was normal for a parent. This explained the black rings under his eyes. He moved towards his small desk in the corner and began to expertly organize his work while holding a sobbing child in one arm. Keisuke helped the best he could, but the small pile of random pages couldn't count as very organized. "It was nice to see you again, Haruhi. Come by and visit us next time. We don't have school everyday, so it'll be harder to see each other very often, but hopefully we'll find ways so that these two can warm up to you." As I watched him, I recalled a statement my father had made when I was very young. Something along the lines of 'once you become a parent you'll become a master at multitasking.'

"I don't… want… to… sleep." Kohaku denied through his tears.

"That's what you say now, Haku." Kaoru replied simply as he rearranged the rest of his documents. "I'm going to leave early, Kyouya."

"Go right ahead." The other man answered without looking up from his work.

I guess it was maternal instincts, but I found myself walking towards Kaoru. He watched me, and he beamed indifferently. I took the papers from him and assisted in the collection of what appeared to be his portfolio. "Hey, I'm sorry about making him cry." I took this chance to apologize myself.

Shaking his head, "No, it's fine. This is the irrational twin… just like Hikaru." Kaoru mumbled the last three words as his gaze became distant for a split second. "I need to take these two home for a nap and then dinner. Oh-" His expression changed to one of a newly learned idea, "would you like to join us? I know it's last minute and all, but Tamaki and Kyouya were planning to come over tonight as well."

"Um… sure?" I had a hotel to find, but I was silently hoping to get more answers. Kaoru speaking his brother's name had relit the flame in me to know where the older twin was. Maybe more answers about the whereabouts of the older twin were at his home. I knew it was tremendously improbable, but it wouldn't hurt to give it a try. "What time should I drop by?"

"Well, Kyouya comes by around six, six-thirty. Tamaki arrives earlier, but it's a Sunday so he has nothing else to do." As if right on cue, the said blonde came out of nowhere. He picked up Keisuke in his arms, who blinked quietly. Kaoru and I detected a sudden change in plans.

Tamaki grinned innocently, completely content holding a small boy in one arm. He was taller than Kaoru and could easily hold both twins in his arms. "Speaking of nothing to do, why don't I take the boys home for you? Then you and Haruhi and Kyouya can catch up on old times together." Kaoru and I glanced at each other. Tamaki would never pass a moment of spending time with me; we both knew that much, but what was he doing offering to leave the room? I narrowed my eyes and he continued to smile. Tamaki stepped forward and took the quieter Kohaku in his other arm. The boy didn't fight, but tiredly placed his head on his blond 'second father's' shoulder. Keisuke took his brooding brother's hand. Kaoru continued to stare, confused. "Haruhi, it's not my fight, remember?" Tamaki rapidly added.

My eyes widened with recognition at the statement he had made in the elevator. Tamaki was trying to give me some time alone with the Ohtori and Hitachiin. He had never been so perceptive before. I could get my answers and Tamaki was allowing me to do so. For some strange reason, I could feel myself blushing at the knowledge of his actions. "Yeah, you're right." I said simply.

"Ok! Then I'll take these adorable bundles of joy home and put them to bed. You three can enjoy yourselves. Au revoir!!!" Before anyone could anything more, the blonde left the room.

There was a moment of silence. Actually there were several moments of silence as we stared at the door he had exited. A couple of beeps pulled me out of my trance and I looked to Kaoru who had his cell phone out. "Rebekah, Tamaki Suou is coming home with the boys. Could you please ready their bed for a late naptime, thank you." He paused as he listened, "Yes, and for dinner, could please take the fancy tuna out of the freezer and begin thawing it; we'll be having a guest over tonight."

The Hitachiin hung up and I found one golden gaze and coal black gaze burrowing into me. I sighed firmly and got straight to the point. "So… the boys are gone… Now about Hikaru…"

With this, Kaoru collapsed onto the chair at his desk. He ran his hand over his face and shook his head. The younger twin had finally given it up. He stared at me for several long seconds, "Hikaru isn't here. He lives with his wife and the rest of our family in Paris."

I walked to the other end of the office to sit at a small couch. I listened intently, "Paris…? All of your family, but why-"

Kaoru began to shake his head. He leaned forward, his elbows on his knees, and exhaustion fully evident in his form. "It began about five years ago…"

"…with my cousin." Kyouya finished.

I didn't react… I didn't say anything. Instead I listened as Kaoru, with the help of Kyouya, gave me all the answers to every single question I had had that day.

* * *

That's it. Chapter two is finished. I swear, I'm sorry, but the whole chapter was lengthy and rushed being with all the work I have to do in real life. Thanks for reading and remember:

**TO REVIEW!!!** Click the link below and leave a comment!! PLEASE!!

Most of the foreign languages I used in this Chapter and further chapters will be translated in some way for you readers if it has any importance for the story. Problem is Haruhi does not understand Spanish, so not everything she hears will be translated to coincide with her POV. Thank you so very much for taking the time to read! I worked hard on this chapter's characterization.

**Next Time:** Haruhi asked her questions and received her answers. She learned of the twin's split and now it's time to make everything right again. Unfortunately, Kaoru can tell her just so much and she'll realize that trying bring things back to the way they were will be harder than she first imagined. Ok, seriously, where is Mori and Honey!!? You'll have to find out next time- Stay tuned!


	4. The Game Truly Begins

Whoohoo, chapter three! I'm so happy that I have reached this point of a story. Unfortunately, I've been debating on whether I should finish Left Behind after two years of not touching it. I've been contacted twice now to continue, but I keep thinking about my dad and his homophobic tendencies. Well, I have about half of Chapter 19 finished, but I'll have to get the writing mojo back. Whenever I look at my old stories, I get a large writer's block. Gah, I've scarred my mind!

**Last Time:** She's asked the questions and she's got her answers, but for Haruhi, it isn't enough. Kaoru is a lone parent in need of life to go back to normal, but will Haruhi be able to bring everything back to the way things were before she left for the United States?

Disclaimer: I do not and have never owned OHSHC. I wish I did, but then I wouldn't be here if that was the case.

Title: It Takes Two to Play the Game

Author: Yuzume Mikien (Whoo I'm back)

Pairings: I don't have a straight line up yet, but… TamakixHaruhi, hinted HikaruxHaruhi, HikaruxOC, HoneyxOC, MorixOC, KaoruxOC, KaoruxHaruhi, hopefully other pairings will form after a while.

Rating: Pg-13 to M, just to be safe.

Warnings: Language, and suggestive themes, but for now, keeping the content at a safe PG-13.

Genre: Drama, Anguish

**PLEASE REVIEW** I love reviews and what you guys think. If you have any ideas for the storyline I'm always open for more. Oh… please don't flame. Constructively criticize, but don't flame.

You've reach this far in the story, so I won't have need to remind you _Thoughts_ and **English. **Remember to enjoy!

On with Chapter Three!

* * *

Chapter Three: The Game Truly Begins

Kyouya POV

According to popular belief, Patience is a virtue. The ability to tolerate certain behaviors, especially imbecilic ones, is, at times, seen as an honorable trait to have. A trait to be idolized and given adulation. An attribute that deserves a proud pat on the back and warrants mass acceptance. Patience with the other human beings of this world is continuously required in this life. If one thinks otherwise, well, he is worthy of all the consequences that accompany that mindset. Argument said, it brings me to acknowledge this same quality within myself.

Simply put, I've always had tolerance. I've always held onto patience as is necessary for the youngest son and last heir to the Ohtori name. It is rare that I lose such patience, but alas, even the notorious Shadow King has experienced his… limits.

Peculiarly, I've never found my lack of complaint a problem around my father or brothers. After a few years of self-observation, I've come to realize that my patience is immortal to the words of immediate family, but for the actions of my associates, personal or otherwise, that same tolerance is swiftly used up.

I've lost my temper only a small number of times. One that remains of high significance is the time I broke in front of a certain foolish blonde with fictitious views of life. After I lost my patience with Tamaki, I've always reminded myself to allow some breathing room between those around me and my own problems. Due to his stupidity and carefree nature, admirable, yes, but not completely intelligent, my tolerance has strengthened considerably. For some time afterwards, I was sure that my patience and façade of interest would be nearly indestructible.

Unfortunately, as 'Patience is a virtue,' popular knowledge adds that, 'Nothing can last forever'. Sadly, such a statement includes my tolerance.

I once believed that my patience would keep me sane through every word and action I would come to experience. This belief has changed over the years.

After high school, I came to realize that I would be very much mistaken. I came to know that I still had a limit and that my tolerance's indestructibility does include family members.

I can thank 'her' for the knowledge. And when I say 'her', I mean Maria, a cousin who I had really no patience for. Of course, I regret not having any for her…now.

Things were noticeably different nearly five years ago.

"Get out!" Five years ago, before the boys were born and before Kaoru was disowned by his family, I had been sitting at the same desk Haruhi had seen me in when she had entered my office to greet me after seven years. My words were much colder during the occurrence of five years previous, but that was all due to the topic of discussion. Before the boys were born, their existence had been considered nothing more than a nuisance by most of the Hitachiin and Ohtori families, I, remorsefully, held that same popular view. Maybe that same view contributed to my lack of tolerance for my nineteen-year-old cousin holding the children of a fellow host of the Host Club I had helped found. "I don't have time to hear excuses, just get out!"

I had been speaking with the girl and the younger Hitachiin twin no more than ten minutes before I had lost my temper. I don't understand as to why I was so indignant by the mere words, "I'm pregnant." Yet hearing my illegitimate cousin having the illegitimate children of a friend of mine made me quickly blow. "I know you never did learn Japanese and if I really do have to make myself clear, **GET OUT**!"

My voice echoed out into my large office. I had been only twenty-one at the time and had spent no more than six months in that office, but I was already kicking people out. I could feel myself hiss dangerously, hands coming to an abrupt stop over my computer's keyboard. My gaze flew from Maria's to the twin who had accompanied her. I was not sure as to which boy had come, but either way I was still irritated. What's more, even after telling them twice, they had yet to leave.

I gave a deep sigh and reached for the phone, "Fine, if it is really that difficult then I'll get security." I growled harshly. My hand took hold of the phone, but a darker arm took hold of it, hand over my own, and held it down against its cradle.

"Kyouya! Please, listen to me. I beg of you!" Simple, yet emotional words flooded out from my American cousin's mouth. I was unfazed by the tears that threatened to fall from her dark eyes that mirrored my own. She shook her head, black curls swaying, "I promise you, I won't bother you again. Just please help us!"

Pulling away from her hold and the phone, I leaned back, as far away from her as I could manage. "Why? What will I gain from helping you?" I was cruelly blunt, but I didn't care. Maria had made a foolish decision and I was pissed off enough to let her experience the consequences without the support from any of her family. I was the first and only person she ever did tell about the pregnancy within our family. "You've already been warned not to blemish the family name. Now look what has happened. Why should I help correct your own faults?"

"Um…" She straightened and suddenly avoided my eyes. "But… but… th-that's the point. You're the only family I have now, so…"

I interrupted her, "So what?! Just because I'm family doesn't mean I have the obligation to help you. You're not a child." My gaze moved passed her and fell upon the twin, standing mutely by the door. "You don't seem to comprehend the consequences of your actions. The Ohtori family can't accept the full blame for this… Unless, you were the one who led him to bed."

Maria followed my look and glanced at the unnamed twin. My words slowly began to sink in and she turned on me again, "No! I didn't do such a thing! I wouldn't do such a thing. H-Hikaru and I made the decision to sleep together! I didn't lead him to anything! Kyouya, please, I beg you to help us. There's no way his family will accept this news!" Her voice cracked when she uttered the Hitachiin's name.

"And what stupid assumption brought you to that damned notion? Oh, did you forget that your own family would react the same way!" I snapped and she stepped back, but didn't fully back down, clearly an American trait.

"But Kyouya! I-"

I slammed my hands hard unto my desk, making it rattle loudly and violently, "The hell with it Maria, use the damned respectful suffixes!! I'm not your friend, I'm your older cousin! **Get that through your thick head!**" My outburst finally brought the unshed tears to roll down her cheeks and a reaction from the Hitachiin who had remained motionless through the whole conversation. The twin, I now had a feeling was an unusually subdued Hikaru, walked a few steps forward. His hands were clenched white at his sides, but he stopped short of inserting himself into the verbal exchange between family members.

Not even tears could suppress the obstinate girl, who wiped her face before continuing. "**I don't give a care! You get this into your stubborn** **head! Family members look out for each other! They don't just sit and watch each other fight for survival! I don't know how the hell you were raised Kyouya, but the more I come to know you, the more I know why my father left this family in the first place!"**

Rolling my eyes, "Correction: My uncle never left due to family ties. He left because of you, and like him you've ruined your life as well! The Ohtori family disowned him once and we can surely do it again with his illegitimate daughter who doesn't seem to learn from her stupid parents' mistakes! Like mother like daughter- or is it like father like daughter?"

"**Shut up!**" Maria was so upset that she was speaking in her first language completely. Japanese had been learned in the year she had been living with us, but at that moment she was too frustrated to care just as much as I was too frustrated to listen reasonably. "**You don't know my father! You don't and never will! Mom and dad loved each other. That's why dad left this crazy family!**"

I began to laugh cruelly at her explanation. I felt my eyes look to Hikaru again who met my gaze and guiltily looked away. It was very unlike him to avoid conflict like this. Was it not Kaoru who was the recessive twin? I placed my elbows on my desk and laced my fingers, "If that's the case, then why don't you just do the same? Run away from this **'Crazy Family'**. It'll do everyone a favor." I wasn't aware of how malicious my statements were and how much I would regret them years later, "Oh wait- will that option still work? Do you and Hikaru… LOVE each other? Mind you, at our age lust is often misinterpreted for love. Are you sure you two just didn't have one or two, too many drinks?"

My glare drilled into Hikaru still quite a distance away. If he wasn't going to say anything, there was no way I'd let my stupid cousin destroy his life. Also, I knew it was he who had led her away with drinks. Kaoru and I had watched him very closely during the Hitachiin twin's birthday celebration. After a second of no reaction, I looked back at Maria, whose tears had created wet streaks down her face. Even she didn't say anything against my final query.

"My, my… you don't know, do you? Did you at least ask him if he wanted to be a father? Or at least, questioned if he had - what was it- a fiancée or something of that sort?" I continued to hurt the teen with my words. I felt unusually proud of finally being able to shut her up and cease any further argument. Hikaru had stiffened and suddenly ran a hand through his hair uncomfortably.

Staring at him for a long moment, I narrowed my eyes. Something was wrong with the twin; this wasn't normal. I kept staring as Maria attempted to speak, but was too upset to actually mean anything. "**I-I… He-He… I told him… and he didn't say… I mean… He never de-denied…**"

"If you're going say anything worth listening to, will you go ahead and spit it out already?" I muttered while I continued to watch Hikaru. He took a furtive glance in my direction and then turned away. Finally contemplation brought results, and I straightened as the conclusions began to register. I took my glasses off and rubbed my eyes for good measure, having the abrupt idea that the boy was not who I had first thought he was.

It was during that instant that I heard Maria whisper something in her second language, Spanish, "Hikaru no sabe…p-p-pero Kaoru… Queremos el bebe." Her face was wet with fallen tears. When I heard the name of the younger twin, everything fell into place. The Hitachiin who stood at the other end of the room had his hair parted to the left. This twin was not the father of the child, so why was he choosing to be here.

Rude as it was, I pointed abruptly in the twin's direction. "Come here!" I ordered severely and the boy looked up, obeyed, and came closer. He would not look at me and was holding the mother of 'his' child at a distance. I turned to Maria once more, "What about Kaoru?"

Maria pulled back farther, "What?" She glanced at the man beside her and the Hitachiin clenched his fists. "What are you talking about?"

"What were YOU talking about? I heard the name Kaoru. You didn't sleep with him too, did you?" There was a pause that was a bit too long for me to take seriously, "Did you?!"

"NO!" Her voice cracked as she answered.

"Don't lie to me!"

"I'm not lying!"

"Then who the hell is that!?" I moved my head in the Hitachiin's direction. "God forbid what my father will do to you once he finds out that you were sleeping with both the Hitachiin sons!"

Shaking her head, Maria was too swift to plead, "No! No please!!! Kyouya, I beg of you! Don't tell Uncle! It's not what it looks like-!"

"Then it's true then. You were lying to me!!"

Her curls flying as she desperately tried to get me to understand. "NO!! Kyouya! I'm telling you, I ne-"

"Who did you sleep with then and who the hell is this?!"

"NO!!!" My cousin had become suddenly pale and was shaking. Tears were raining in torrents and she was swiftly breaking down. The unidentified twin was looking at her now, his eyes filled with unrestrained worry, but his arms were still limp at his sides.

I narrowed my eyes and chuckled incredulously, "You're really not going to answer, are you? Well, what do you expect me to do? Should I just tell my father that Maria decided to spend a night with both Hikaru and Kaoru Hitachiin like some useless whore?!"

"ENOUGH!!" The mute twin let out a cry.

Before I knew it Maria's arm was up and swinging towards my face, I braced myself, but a millisecond later I did not feel the familiar sting of a slap in the face. I blinked and looked up, finding the unnamed Hitachiin with her arm in hand. Staring at the scene, I was filled with disbelief at how gentle the firm motion appeared. The red head pulled her arm down slowly and tenderly. Unlike myself, he held no malice or anger, and took my cousin in his arms. Feeling the hold, she broke down and collapsed into his embrace, muttering desperately, "**I'm not… I'm not… I'm not…lying…**"

"Shhh. That's enough; don't listen to him anymore, Maria-chan. Shhh. This stress isn't healthy for the baby." Gaze widening I rapidly recognized the voice of the younger twin, Kaoru, escape the boy's lips. He held her with no remorse. He held her as is he didn't care what he was doing and that he didn't care that he would disowned for his decision to support the Ohtori family's illegitimate daughter.

Opening my mouth, it took me a second or two to finally regain my bearings. The first ten minutes of the conversation, before my patience had worn off, Maria had clearly said that she had slept with Hikaru, but now I looking at Hikaru's twin holding the sobbing girl. "Kaoru-"

His hand was faster than my words as the normally recessive brother grabbed me roughly by the front of the shirt. I was sitting and he was standing so he was able to pull me forward towards him. I was more surprised by the sudden personality change. "Don't… Don't you ever call her that ever again! I don't care if you're not going to help her, but I swear I'll kill you if you keep saying half the shit you're saying!!" Shock filled me, as I numbly nodded, "She never slept with me, but I don't really give a damn! I want to be with her, I want to protect her, I even want to father my brother's baby. Hikaru doesn't know a thing… but…but we don't care!!"

Seconds came and went, "Don't be a fool…" I found myself uttering pitifully.

"No, Kyouya-san, don't be such an ass." Shoving me back, Kaoru finished with a growl, "We don't need your damn help! We can do this on our own. Come on, Maria"

The twenty-year-old man, walked towards the door of my office, pulling Maria gently after him. Before exiting, Kaoru warned me as my eyes fell on my cousin's pained face (for a second I began to feel the regret that would plague me for years to come), "Keep your mouth shut about this Kyouya. If you really don't want to help Maria and I then don't waste your breath telling anybody about any of this. Forget and keep being an apathetic ass, that's what you're good at." And with this they left.

That was last time I saw my cousin and the last time I saw Kaoru, who I didn't meet again until seven months later. For years afterward I was filled with guilt for my actions that day and I never did feel as confident again. Maybe it was due to the extent of Kaoru's sacrifice that shook me to the core, but guilt became a large feeling that fueled me through each passing year as I helped Kaoru and his sons get back on their feet. At times I feel responsible for Maria's suffering… for if I had only said yes to her pleas and had given her the health care she needed, maybe she wouldn't have died.

Sadly, even actions fueled by guilt have their limits, such as my patience that day. There is only so much I can do, but not even I can return life to the way things were before this mess-even for Kaoru's sake.

That argument had happened five years ago, but nothing of the past has been put to rest. Maybe… just maybe, Haruhi can help change that.

"Kyouya… are you all right?" Her voice still holds the same simple tone. She is the only one who can help bring back normalcy.

"Yes, Haruhi?" My voice is distant. "I apologize, I was… merely reminiscing."

"Those things you and Kaoru told me earlier; they can't be true, can they? I mean in seven years… how-?"

"You'll learn more about fact and fiction later Haruhi… be patient."

Hmph… Patience… When has that helped anyone?

Haruhi POV

An hour and a half after Kaoru and Kyouya began their recollection of the events that had happened the past five years, I found myself sitting quietly in the passenger seat of Kyouya's black Ferrari, heading to Kaoru's home for dinner. It was peculiar that the whole time they had spoken, their words did not include anything previous to the near five years that had passed since the Hitachiin twin's twentieth birthday. Either way, I was getting most of the answers I wanted, so I had no right to complain. I would find more about the final two years of my absence another day.

I glanced at Kyouya who drove silently, his face boasting deep contemplation. He had uttered something about patience a few moments before and now was deathly still. I watched him for a moment, continuing in my attempts to grasp the whole hour and a half long story that he and Kaoru had just given me. To put it simply, I now knew that due to Kaoru's huge sacrifice, he was now the father of his twin brother's illegitimate sons. Not only this, but little Kohaku and Keisuke were of Ohtori descent as well, meaning Kyouya had the full right to assist Kaoru in the raising the children in Hikaru's place. Maria Angelina Del Rosario Ohtori might have been Kyouya's distant cousin, but strangely, Kyouya seemed close to Kaoru while the man's own twin brother was in Paris and called only once a month. The bond between the Hitachiins was weak now and it was frustrating to think that I had missed the whole occurrence and maybe could have kept it from happening. Maybe if I had not left, things would have happened differently.

"You know…" I began, thinking deeply about the story I had been given, "Why would Kaoru be so obliged to take full responsibility of the boys. I mean, I know how he is the more level headed twin than Hiikaru, but doesn't that mean Kaoru knew the consequences of his actions?"

There was a few seconds of continued silence as Kyouya mentally registered my question. We were now at the edges of the city, heading into the suburbs full of middle class and higher homes. I took a moment to gaze out the window and watched the scenery go by. The neighborhoods we were heading into were did not look like areas I would find previous Ouran Academy, Class A students to be living in. Finally Kyouya answered, "He knew the consequences… very well in fact… That's why he made the decision in the first place."

I looked at the raven-haired boy, perplexed. I noticed how his hands gripped the steering wheel tightly as he spoke calmly, but through his teeth. His fists were whitening. There was something more beneath Kaoru's actions and such a fact wasn't vexing to comprehend to myself alone, but the Ohtori as well. I couldn't help but note that Kyouya and Kaoru's relationship had deepened considerably over the passed seven years. I had never taken Kyouya as the emotionally caring type, but as we continued on our way to Kaoru's house, the young CEO was revealing a side of him I had never seen before. Kaoru and Kyouya had been at a mutual understanding in high school, but this understanding had grown into an emotional and mental dependence. The question was who was depending on whom? Were the twins, Kohaku and Keisuke, the reason behind this strengthened bond between very different yet similar members of the host club?

"Guilt." Once again the Shadow King was one step ahead of my thoughts. "You're wondering why it is so apparent that talking about Kaoru and the events of the previous half decade have such an effect on me, is that correct?"

The only thing I could do was mimic his first word, "Guilt?" Abruptly, Kyouya began to slow and parked silently on the curb of some random street. He took out his cell phone and held it to his ear without dialing. I stared in further confusion when suddenly out of nowhere, a dark blue Mini Cooper came to a stop beside us from behind. We had been driving through the city for about half an hour and I had overlooked the fact that we had passed by the Hitachiin whose house we were traveling to. Kaoru paused by the Ferrari and rolled down the window, a gentle smile on his face.

"Is there a problem, Kyouya?" He asked simply. I came to look into his golden eyes and he gave me a friendly wink. I rolled down my own window so he could be heard well. The Hitachiin waited for a reply and I heard Kyouya begin on some random monologue.

The Ohtori spoke on the phone as if he had been speaking with some employee for the last ten minutes. He had not called anyone and I swiftly knew the reasons for his unusual actions, "…I don't need to know this right now. I told you to inform me on any probable problems that might occur over the next twenty-four hours BEFORE I left for the day… Yes… No… I'm not going to think for you…" His black gaze finally registered the young twin and he motioned with his hand for Kaoru to go ahead. My stare fell from one man to the other as Kaoru reacted to this action by sighing, his smile faltering. Kyouya turned his face as if more interested in the imaginary worker on the phone and I caught Kaoru shake his head uselessly, the weak smile still plastered on his face.

Kaoru readjusted his seatbelt and glanced at me, "Damn workaholic." He muttered audibly for me to hear and inaudibly for Kyouya-if the man had been on the phone. The older man did not react even when Kaoru revved his engine, "I guess I'll go on ahead, would you like to transfer cars, Haruhi?"

"Absolutely not!" Kyouya snapped into the phone and I shook my own head in reply to the red head's question.

Nodding, Kaoru went to roll up his window again, "Ok, I'll see you at home." He spoke before driving off and out of sight.

At the moment the twin disappeared, Kyouya 'hung up'. I glared at him and he gazed back at me nonchalantly. For a moment, we looked at each other before the man suddenly fell right into our previous conversation. "Yes, guilt."

I frowned and rolled by eyes, "Kyouya-sempai, what in the world was that about?" I questioned, "What was the gain behind lying to Kaoru?"

"Simple, I was able to gain more time to speak with you." The Ohtori readjusted his glasses and placed his cell phone in his breast pocket. "Not only that, but you saw how he reacted to my… slight distraction, did you not?"

I hated the knowledge that I was getting even more lost in this talk, "Yeah, but-"

"I became his 'Hikaru' due to guilt." Pulling back, I felt the question marks swim around in my head at Kyouya's explanation. You couldn't just name yourself as a replacement 'Hikaru' so easily, could you? "I made a terrible mistake five years ago that caused Kaoru and my nephews to suffer, and in retrospect I'm repenting for that mistake. Guilt is what brought me to openly be part of his broken family and guilt is what keeps me close. I love Kaoru and the twins as an extension of my family because of this guilt, just as Kaoru took the blame for impregnating Maria due to his own guilt, understand?"

Blinking, I made sure my expression continued to boast one of puzzlement. Kyouya sighed and rubbed his forehead, trying to think of a way to explain his 'love' for his cousin's children and 'partner' in a tone of cool indifference. I could see it was difficult for him to find the right words, but his actions were a lot louder than any statement he could make. "You're close to Kaoru and the twins because you're guilty for not supporting your cousin from the beginning. I guess you must have treated her pretty harshly then, didn't you?

He sighed again and chuckled pitifully, "It is peculiar how, the day you arrive, my energy runs out, Haruhi. I will not hide from you the information I can personally give you, but I don't have the right to tell you more than necessary. You saw how he reacted to my… 'obsession' to work. It was due to that obsession that I… I did not treat Maria as a family member, I treated her like… a whore." Kyouya leaned back in his seat and checked his watch; "She came to me for help, pregnant, and alone. The father of her children was nowhere in sight, but the idiot was there trying to stand in his brother's place. I could see the two were both screwed over and I knew quite well that things couldn't get worse, but instead of being the only person to help, I decided to do as everyone else did and refused to assist in every way, shape, or form. She asked me for help, knowing that no one else would. And I threw that trust right back in her face. Now, she's dead and my nephews don't have a mother or a father; just two foolish uncles trying to relinquish guilt by doing everything they can to raise them."

Kyouya shook his head, "I guess that talk earlier brought back difficult memories." The Ohtori started the engine of the car and turned into the road, "I apologize, Haruhi… I just revealed another unanswered part of this predicament to torture you with. I-I guess I needed you to know this before you truly returned. You're not going back to high school, Haruhi. We've all made mistakes and because of them, you may come to hate us and our attempts to make things right."

I regretted speaking up and I regretted reopening wounds in not just Kaoru's heart, but Kyouya's as well. As distant as the Ohtori had been raised towards his family, I knew how much it must have hurt the first time he realized that he had betrayed the only loved one that had depended on him and no one else. The years' events were becoming more complicated as I received one answer and had ten questions in return. "I'm sorry, Kyouya-sempai. I never meant to unearth passed grievances." I apologized.

Kyouya didn't answer verbally; he only shook his head.

After moments of travel in silence, I finally caught sight of the Tamaki's silver Volvo and Kaoru's dark blue Mini Cooper parked in the driveway of a lone building. I realized that we had driven passed the middle class homes and apartments and into a more secluded area. We had traveled up a hill and onto a gated off property that overlooked the previous blocks of houses. Kyouya drove up the driveway and parked beside Kaoru's Sudan. As we slowly exited the Ferrari, I took a look of my surroundings. My gaze fell upon Kaoru's home.

It wasn't alarming large or extremely small. I was surprised at how simple the home looked on the outside, compared to Kyouya's modern building complex of a residence and Tamaki's extravagant palace of a dwelling. It was a two-story home, about half the size of the apartment complex I had lived in for most of my young life. It had a red brick base and was built of dark brown wooden panels. The house boasted a natural western style, with a forest green shutters and roof. Kaoru's home looked as if it belonged in a middle of a large forest instead of a small hill where it stood, seen by the inhabitants of the standard Japanese housing styles below.

I glanced around and saw a large play set nearby, also made of dark brown wood with green accents. The playground was clearly for the twins' entertainment as I noticed that lying against the side of the play set was a pair of small tricycles. Turning, I moved my attention to Kyouya, who watched me patiently. I sighed and moved away from the car. I headed in direction of the home's entryway when Kyouya spoke, "Haruhi."

Stopping, I turned and looked back at the CEO, "What?"

The Ohtori placed his hands in his pockets and walked towards me, "Before we go, can you do me a favor?"

"Sure?"

His glasses glinted in the light of the sun already low in the horizon, his hand landing on my shoulder gently. "Help him will you? There is only so much I can do." I felt my gaze narrow as I looked up into his eyes. I wanted to question him again, but before I could he strolled ahead and up the long pathway to the front door. I followed him with my gaze before moving my body. By the time I was by his side again, he had entered another dialogue- this time with Kaoru, himself, who had been sitting right outside his front door waiting for no one else but the two of us.

My mind was at its limit and I didn't register the words that were shared from male to male. It wasn't until I overheard Kaoru call to me, "Hmm?" I blinked out of my thoughts and gained a chuckle in return.

"I said 'Welcome to my Home'." Kaoru addressed. He wore a large grin on his face, his emotion the exact opposite of the one he expressed during the stroll down memory lane in Kyouya's office. "It's a bit much, this home… but I had no choice in the matter per se. I wanted privacy and simplicity, but somehow I got this place instead." The twin laughed and scratched the back of his head.

'_A bit much?' That was an interesting confession from a son of a rich family. _I thought and glanced at the home again. Kaoru's life had gone down in class. He yearned for a simple life with his illegitimate children. I was beginning to pity the young Hitachiin. "Thank you, Kaoru."

The red head nodded and turned his back to me as he rang the doorbell. "I was waiting for you two to arrive." After a few seconds, the front door slowly creaked open and revealed a dark blonde girl behind it-most likely the maid. She had light brown eyes and looked up in recognition at Kaoru. The girl opened the door wider and further showed her form clad in a simple uniform. "I'm home, Rebekah."

The girl's face broke out into a smile and she bowed quickly, greeting the Hitachiin, "Master Kaoru, welcome home!" Abruptly, she straightened, rushed forward, and tackled Kaoru around the waist. He flew back, passed Kyouya, and me and onto the ground. "You have come home safely! It is time to celebrate of your safe return."

I stared in strange surprise, but Kyouya did not react. The blonde held the red head tightly, she was taller than me and under her dark green uniform I could see her arm muscles flexing as she hugged Kaoru. She was alarming strong. Kaoru laughed uncomfortably until he ran out of oxygen and began to cough, "Rebekah-chan… can't… breathe!"

Eyes widening, the girl released Kaoru and jumped up, dusting herself off. "Sorry, sir, but you know what they say, 'A hug never hurt anyone!'" She giggled and suddenly noticed Kyouya and my presences. Spinning to face us, she bowed, "Oh I apologize, greetings guests. Welcome to the Hitachiin residence."

Kyouya coolly readjusted his spectacles and nodded in acknowledgment. I looked at Rebekah's young face and then at Kaoru's rising form. He rubbed his back and stood up. I didn't know how to react. Kaoru came to my side and quickly introduced the girl to my lost expression. "Haruhi, this is Rebekah, my babysitter, house caretaker, umm… Rebekah-chan, meet my dear friend from high school, Haruhi Fujioka."

I opened my lips to speak, but the hyper blonde spoke first, "Hello, Fujioka-san, I'm Rebekah, the maid!" She was brightly smiling and I was overcome by her energy; this girl was not Japanese.

"Rebekah-chan, I told you not to call yourself that!" Kaoru declared quickly.

Rebekah glanced at the older man, "But I'm only saying what's true. I'm your maid; there's nothing wrong with that." Kaoru frowned modestly and I knew he was feeling bad for having a 'maid'. The said 'maid' was a rough girl, who knew what she wanted and had a hard head to boot. She reminded me of a number of Americans I had met in the United States. "I help clean the house, wash the dishes, do the laundry, and care for the boys, while you pay me with food, shelter, and high school tuition- oh plus my monthly recreation check. There's nothing negative about being your maid, you fragile Asian, you." Kaoru flinched as Rebekah punched his arm, 'playfully'.

"Rebekah-san." I muttered, "Nice to meet you." I tried to remain submissive in slight paranoia of the young blonde tackling me down herself. She was like a female version of Tamaki, except hyper and quite a bit stronger.

"HI!" She declared in return. Grinning widely, "Fujioka-san, can you tell me something? Was Kaoru-sama always so… puny?"

Kyouya openly laughed at this question and Kaoru went a bright red. He glared helplessly at Rebekah and I could see that their relationship was one similar to that of a older brother and younger sister- a very powerful younger sister. I was hesitant in my answer, "Well…" Kaoru gave me a desperate look, "Kaoru isn't very puny now… is he?"

Kyouya covered his mouth with his lips as he restrained his laughter. I had not helped the situation. Rebekah stared at me interestingly, "Is that so?" She took the taller boy in a headlock, "I don't know what type of woman he can get with a body like this. Look, no muscles!"

"Stop it… Rebekah-chan!" Kaoru begged helplessly. He tried to excuse his 'maid's' actions, "Forgive her, she's a handful."

Giggling, Rebakah retorted lightly, "Handful!? I'd say I'm much more than that!" The girl gripped Kaoru's neck harder, "I'm here to make you tougher, stronger, and bolder, Kaoru-sama!"

Kaoru was turning blue.

"Hey!" I stepped forward, "I think you're-"

"Rebekah-chan, may I ask where Kohaku and Keisuke are?" I was interrupted by Kyouya, but it was predictable that the Ohtori knew exactly what to say to stop the nonsense going on.

And as if the magic words had just been spoken, the blonde gasped and dropped her employer unceremoniously, "Oh yes, I almost forgot! Suou-sama is still inside!" The girl rushed to the door and threw it open. "Please come in, come in!"

Kyouya nodded silently again and followed calmly. I stood back and helped pick up the forgotten Kaoru. He patted the dust off his clothes and shook his head tiredly. His face showed exhaustion, but his eyes were still filled with a gentle adoration. Kaoru beamed at me, "She isn't the most orthodox maid in the world, but I wouldn't have anyone else care for my boys."

We walked side by side into his home and came upon a long corridor. Kaoru shut the door behind him and the sound of a piano echoed loudly into the hall. I stared off into the distance; I recognized the gentle melody that was being played and I knew who was playing it too. Turning, I noticed Kaoru watching me, he motioned forward to the second door to the right and we continued our way down the wooden floored home into a large den. A grand piano sat at the center of the room and at the piano the Host King gracefully played.

The melody flowed throughout the house and filled me with ease. It brought back memories of times more than seven years ago. Kaoru and I stood silently at the doorway. Kyouya sat a few feet away in the shadow of the room and Rebekah listened from beside the window, where the last rays of light filtered through. Soon there wouldn't be enough to light for Tamaki to read any sheet music, but by then his memory would continue his mini concert long into the night. Minutes came and went, the room darkening enough that Rebekah had to turn on the lights. The first lamp illuminated the room and pulled Tamaki out of his world. The music stopped and he twisted his neck and torso around. He saw the four of us in the room, and his eyes fell on me.

The Suou smiled widely, but didn't move. He was in a docile state that he must have learned when I was living in the States. After a moment, I noticed that on the piano bench. on either side, slept the two raven-haired Hitachiin twins, using Tamaki's thighs as pillows. "Good evening, Haruhi." The blonde whispered.

Kaoru moved forward quickly, his voice whispering lowly, "Tamaki, you really didn't need to allow them to sleep on you like that." The young father gazed at Tamaki solemnly. "I'm sorry, they must've been quite hassle."

"Oh no, I enjoyed every minute of it, being with these two." Tamaki answered back, "Rebekah told me the boys were to sleep in their room, but I couldn't help it. You know how Kohaku loves listening to me play the piano." Kaoru released an intake of breath and gently worked on removing his sons from Tamaki's lap. He picked the first boy up and into his arms. The little one groggily opening his eyes and grabbing hold of his parent's neck, he nuzzled into the base Kaoru's throat where it was the warmest and shifted his gaze to each person in the room. The parting of his hair identified him as Keisuke.

The twenty-four year old Hitachiin, couldn't hold both toddlers without difficulty, so he shook the second boy tenderly, "Haku, wake up. Hijo, despierta por favor." Tamaki watched with quiet delight, "Kohaku, wake up, you don't want to miss dinner, do you?"

Kohaku sat up sluggishly, rubbing his eyes. He glanced around the room also and up at his dad. "Quiero cena, Papa."

"Tengo… hambre tambien, Papa." Keisuke added to his brother's Spanish reply.

Kaoru extended his hand and led the older twin off their Second Otou-san. Kohaku stumbled and leaned against his father's leg, yawning. I had to admit, the two were adorable when not accusing me for cheating. "Vale, vale. I want you two to change first." It was shocking yet satisfying to see the redhead change so dramatically when talking to his sons. It was as if I wasn't looking at a Hitachiin twin, but someone completely different. Strangely, such a thought also brought back the reason for the change behind Kaoru's persona. "Please, make yourselves at home. I'll be right with you. Ah- Rebekah, can you get dinner ready please?"

The order was simple, the hospitality straightforward, and with this, Kaoru left with Kohaku and Keisuke up an iron spiral staircase I hadn't noticed until the very moment Kaoru began ascending it at the corner of the room. Once he was out of sight, my attention returned to the quiet den. The spell was broken and out of the shadows, Kyouya 'materialized' and collapsed upon the long leather couch at one end of the room, facing the piano and television. He threw his feet up on the couch in clear comfort, and picked up a book off a nearby coffee table. I caught a glimpse of its title, A Tale of Two Cities.

With Kyouya reading and Rebekah off to fix dinner, Tamaki and I were left with nothing more to do. Strangely, I didn't receive a random flying hug or anything else for that matter. My gaze fell upon Tamaki, who sat quietly at the piano in a slight depressed slouch. I sighed, it was apparent that he was in one of those moping moods again, growing mushrooms or making hamster homes or something randomly spontaneous like that. Strolling over, I came up to his side and sat down on the piano stool, "Hey, what's the matter? Is something wrong?" I tried to sound comforting, but it was hard to comfort Tamaki as there were a number of things he needed comfort for. "Tamaki-sempai…"

I caught the sound of a page turning and Kyouya indifferently muttering something along the lines of, "Ignore him… he'll recover eventually."

"My…my…" Tamaki began, he stared listlessly at his hands that lay limply on his thighs.

"What's wrong? Tamaki-sempai, your what?" I continued. His bipolar personality was at a whole new level now and his sadness was believable beyond compare. "Hey, it's ok, I'm here. You don't need to look so down. What's the matter?" I reached for Tamaki's shoulder, but he spoke before I touched him.

"My…legs…they're asleep!" The Drama King took hold of both his thighs and squeezed, "Ooooh Haruhi, they tingle soooo much they huuuuurt!"

I felt my eyes widen and I had the sudden urge to strangle the blonde with every fiber of my being. Jumping up, I avoided his outstretched arms. I gave him the harshest glare I could manage that made him pull back indefinitely. I wanted to say something to show my irritation, but the Shadow King beat me to it, "I told you to ignore him."

"Haruhiiiii!" Tamaki called. He moved his legs, but grimaced at the extreme discomfort. "They hurt a lot!"

If one's head could really boil, my head was steaming. "Well what do you think!? Kaoru said it himself, you didn't need to have the twins sleep on your lap the whole time!" I rolled my eyes, "You haven't changed, Tamaki…"

"I doubt Tamaki can ever fully pull himself off the road of the obnoxiously imbecilic." Kyouya once again added for good measure.

The blonde looked into my eyes and his face contorted into one of extreme familiarity I backed away cautiously. At twenty-five, the Host King's puppy-dog eyes still had its potency. He blinked back the tears and physically gave off the, 'Pity me' vibe with his facial expression. I backed off a bit more and instead of sitting there, Tamaki moved towards me on the piano stool. The blonde blinked again and I stepped farther away, my full attention on him. His body inched after me once more and I kept moving farther back. Moments flew by and we continued to this cycle, blink puppy dog eyes, move back, follow forward, blink puppy dog eyes, move back, follow forward, blink puppy dog eyes, move back, follow forward- until I had stepped back so far that I collided with one of the many decorative tables in the room. It's ironic how seven years later the same exact thing could happen to a person twice for as I turned, I saw-with extreme dread- a large framed picture slide off the mahogany table and fall straight to the floor. Whether it was a picture frame or an eight million yen vase, I was somehow cursed to forever break things whenever Tamaki was around.

CRASH!

The three of us in the room winced at the sound of broken glass. Kyouya sat up on the couch and closed the book. Tamaki's sleeping muscles miraculously healed and he got his feet. I froze in place, looking at the busted picture frame. We took a moment to exchange glances. Tamaki and my expressions were ones of extreme panic. What would Kaoru do if he found out? How would we explain the incident? Kyouya was as calm as ever and with a sigh, returned to his place in the Tale of Two Cities. Rapidly, I got to my knees carefully picked up the frame that was lying face down in the midst of the glass. Shaking off the sharp remnants, I flipped the picture over revealing the recorded image.

"Oh… my." I gasped, looking at the photo. The image was of Kaoru and the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. There had been many young women in Ouran, but the well-bred daughters of millionaires paled in comparison to the woman in the picture. The snapshot had been taken during what appeared to be winter, the background behind the couple showing a beautiful snowy landscape and the pair themselves wearing winter attire, the girl with a white cashmere trench coat over a cream colored turtleneck and cream scarf and Kaoru wearing a similar outfit, but in forest and dark green. The two were not looking at the camera, but were submerged in their own world, oblivious of the photo being taken. I gazed at Kaoru and the young woman, trying to register who the girl was, when the picture was taken, and where the two had been. The first question, who, was quickly answered when I noticed that the two were sitting at a snowy gray stone bench. The mystery woman and Kaoru's hands were lain gently on the girl's rounded stomach, which showed significantly through her trench coat. She was about seven months pregnant or more.

In the image, the woman who was clearly Kyouya's cousin, leaned contently against Kaoru, whose right arm held her close from around her shoulder and whose left hand lay tenderly on her belly. The girl was extremely pretty, her tan oval face surrounded by layers of thick curls that were not of Japanese origin, she also held black almond shaped eyes that were of the Japanese Ohtori family. Those eyes looked down at Kaoru's hand, her own small right hand beside his as she touched her middle as well. Their expressions were unforgettable and I covered my mouth to keep from becoming uncharacteristically emotional. They were both smiling, but their smiles showed more than just happiness. They beamed with awe, hope, and love- for not just the unborn infants, but for each other. Kaoru's grin was one hundred percent genuine and showed more hope and happiness than all the smiles he had showed me that day combined.

I opened the back of the frame and slid the photo out. On the back the date of the shot was dated almost five years, the Christmas Eve before the twins were born. I didn't know what to say or what to do. Aside from everything anyone had said to me about Kaoru taking his brother's mistake as his own due to guilt, I knew he did it because of something more. He loved Maria more than anything, it seemed, but now she was gone- Dead, according to Kyouya, but of what I have yet to know.

_How did they feel that day? Coming home to celebrate Christmas for the first time with not their families- twin brothers and the like- but each other? How did Kaoru feel knowing that he was in love with the woman who had slept with his brother? Did Maria even know Hikaru didn't know anything?_

I wasn't sure what to say or if I even had a right to comment on the picture before me. A hand fell onto my shoulder and I looked up to find Tamaki gazing at me in grave understanding. I wanted to say something, anything, but I was speechless. At first, I didn't want to choose sides in this misunderstanding between brothers, especially because it was predictable that Hikaru could have screwed up in such a way and that humans weren't normal. Unfortunately, staring at the image filled me with sadness and worry. Even when Kaoru had told me about Maria, I would have never guessed she had had such a large part of his heart. I had to take a side; I had to take Kaoru's side. How would you feel if you loved someone so much that you would care for her knowing full well that she was carrying your brother's baby that he didn't feel responsible for? "I guess you know now, don't you?" Tamaki muttered lightly. "Did he give you the answers to your questions?"

"Yeah…" I found my voice unusual quiet, "but with each answer I have a hundred more questions."

"Well… you'll get answers to each of them… eventually." The blonde straightened and placed his hands in his pockets, "I know that you'll find a way to get what you want. You always do."

Careful as not to step on the glass, I stood and placed the photo back on the table it had fallen from. I noticed that though the area was large enough for several family pictures, it had only held that single blissful winter image. Actually compared to the rest of the room, the table, the frame, and the wall behind them was simplistically empty, painted a dark creamy green like the rest of the space, but not covered in decorative pictures, objects, bookcases, or fireplaces. To the wall on the right, was the entryway to the hallway, and beside it were several large bookcases made of strong mahogany, filled with books- the first bookcase filled with books on different languages and the following cases filled with works written in as many different dialects. To my left was the wall the grand piano was against, two large bay windows on either side of the large instrument. Across from my location was the joining corner of the last two walls, the left wall was where the fireplace stood and plasma television hung, and the right wall, being partly obscured by the iron staircase, had a small work desk in its area as well as two large portraits of what appeared to be Kohaku and Keisuke in two professionally modeled shots, wearing designer clothing. The wall I had collided into had been a fifth wall that took the place of the corner between the wall with the piano and the wall with bookcases. From the entryway, the fifth wall/corner was hidden by the opening door so that no one would be able to see it until entering the room completely, and I could tell it had been placed there for the soul purpose of the family shrine. Unfortunately, no family meant no shrine, which explained why the lone photograph had been sitting in its place. If a room could tell something about a person, the den told almost everything about Kaoru- his life, his pain, and even his past.

I looked up at the wall above the single table and single photo, finding a single source of decoration. Four images hung in frames on the fifth wall. Each frame held a close up image of a face, one of Kohaku, one of Keisuke, one of Maria, and one of… I couldn't help but feel my eyes widen in surprise. There was the mother's picture and the children's pictures, but for the father… The last photo on the wall was of a Hitachiin, but it wasn't of Kaoru. The final image was a close up shot of Hikaru.

There were no signs of family pictures anywhere. There was the two model shots of the new Hitachiin twins, there had been the single photograph of Kaoru and Maria, and the only collaboration of shots that could have stood as a symbolic expression of the family were in four separate pieces and showed the wrong twin. Yes, Hikaru was the boys' legitimate father, but Kaoru had taken his place, which meant why didn't the last picture show Kaoru's face instead? With the untrained eye, one wouldn't have noticed this difference between identical men who could stand as each other perfectly, but I could see the mischievous eyes of the older twin looking back at me from his place among the faces of Maria and the children. My observations were registering.

Was this the twisted way that Kaoru kept himself from regretting?

Was this supposed to be a constant reminder that Kohaku and Keisuke weren't his children, which in turn kept Kaoru forever guilty for being a failure?

Why would Kaoru resort himself to so much emotional and mental anguish?

The reasons why Tamaki and Kyouya had been so insistent that I be nosy and find out as much as I could were dawning on me. Kaoru was sinking lower and lower into self-sacrifice that the two kings of the Host Club could no longer save him. Kaoru was hurting himself and because I had only been back in Japan for day I still didn't know the extent of the damage. It was my turn to pull Kaoru out and make him enjoy life again.

My head was swimming with ideas, theories, and contemplations on Kaoru's current mental and emotional state. Law school had taught me a few methods I could use to get into his mind and find the reason behind his unhealthy resurfacing guilt. I narrowed my eyes, nearly forgetting the two older men nearby. The single image of Kaoru and Maria showed his love and loyalty to her alone as a woman, not just responsibility. The four images represented either the loved ones he was protecting and tried to protect, or the people whose love he never deserved because he had taken his brother's place.

By the time I snapped out of my thoughts, there was a commotion already going on. Spinning around from the fifth wall, I expected to see Kaoru, but found Kyouya and Tamaki heading towards the front door. I followed them and we walked into the hallway to find Rebekah opening the door to another pair of familiar figures before heading back to work. Takashi Morinozuka and his cousin Mitsukuni Haninozuka had arrived. It was a reunion to behold, I had five host members down and one member…nowhere in sight.

The two were still polar opposites, though to my surprise, Honey had gotten about several inches taller. He was no longer sitting upon Mori's shoulders, but was still the boy lolita even in his mid twenties. His hair had grown longer, but he had cut the front short and had kept the back long, which he tied in a long ponytail. I guess it was masculine purposes. Aside from his hair, Honey still had the adorable eyes and cutesy pink flowers that seemed to come sprinkling off from his own being.

Mori was still as quiet and aloof as ever. He still towered over everyone, but he was still the same height. He had his let his hair grow out too, which was also pulled back in a ponytail. The hairstyle didn't fit with the dark blue(Mori) and gray(Honey) suits they were both wearing, but they didn't seem to mind. Mori glanced up from his and Honey's conversation with Rebekah and recognition filled his features. With Mori's attention I knew that in seconds I would hear-

"HARUUUUUU-CHAAAAAAAN!!" The blonde lolita squealed in delight and collided into me with full force. From 4'9'' to 5'1'' he was nearly my same height and grabbed me around the neck in a huge hug. The random pink flowers flew all over the place and I looked into Honey large hazel orbs sparkling with delight.

"Honey-Sempai, Mori-Sempai. It's been long time." I greeted them with a large smile.

Mori stepped after his cousin and spoke, "You're back." I had a feeling it would be the only two words of the evening.

The two beamed at me with welcome and happiness. Two minutes into the house and Honey jumped into a frenzy of questions and stories. "Haru-chan, when did you get back? Did you miss me? I missed you. Did you miss Takashi? He missed you too. Did you miss Japan? You know I miss Japan whenever I go on business trips. Why did you leave so suddenly? Why didn't you say good-bye to us before you left? Oh- did you miss Usu-chan? He missed you, I know that much, but don't worry he's not lonely anymore; he has Mimi-chan to give him company. OOOOH! Yeah, I didn't know how to contact you. You didn't go to my wedding. Did you know Takashi and I are married now? And we have kids now too! I love my wife. Her name is Lily and she's Canadian, and she knows kendo, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, Okinawan shotokan, Moa Tai, and a lot of other fighting styles! Did you know we have a baby girl? She's only two, but soon she'll be able to start eating cake! We named her Mimiru, but Mimi for short. And Takashi has a wife too. Her name is Aiko and she's the daughter of one of the last pure blood samurai families in Japan. She's quiet and tall like Takashi, but she's really pretty and Takashi loves her very much. Don't you, Takashi?"

"Hm." Mori nodded in reply.

Honey kept going, "Yeah and Takashi has a son, who's just a few months older than Mimi. His name is Takuya and the boy is a natural at kendo. Did you know Mimi and Takuya have both started going to the family dojos? I'm hoping that Mimi won't get too involved with the dojo; she's too small to fight. Oh, so what's been happening with you? How was America? I went to America once about three years ago with Takashi, but we didn't know where you were exactly so we couldn't contact you. We watched WFC there, but I don't think it's very interesting. Not much form. Did you make any new friends? Am I still your cutest friend? Did you meet any boys? Did you fall in love Haru-chan? Have you seen Kaoru yet? Oh, what about the Keisuke and Kohaku? Aren't they cute? I think they're cute. They look a lot like their mommy. Hey, you're a lawyer now just like your mother. Don't you feel accomplished? Do you have your first client yet?"

I listened as best as I could, but there was no way I could answer all his questions let alone remember them. I could only grin helplessly until Mori grabbed his cousin and effortlessly picked him up and moved him to the side to give me breathing room. I thanked him, "Still as hyper as ever, Honey-sempai. I can see you're still a man of many words, Mori-sempai."

The two continued to beam at me and Tamaki and Kyouya decided to jump into the conversation.

"How was Hong Kong? Anything new? I heard that you two were visiting your kendo branches there and keeping an eye out on investments. I've been uneasy with the consumer shift within the last year. The Ohtori doesn't want to fall into a financial hole again." Kyouya queried easily.

"Honey-san, Haruhi knows so many things about America and being a lawyer, now. I believe my father might be hiring her for a personal attorney." Tamaki declared placing both hands on my shoulders and oozing with pride.

I found Mori calmly step towards Kyouya and the two started a quiet conversation about stocks and the like. Honey merely returned to my side and the two blondes spoke over me and to me all at once. I was slightly overwhelmed by the sudden change in mood. Melancholy had turned into elation and I was stuck in the middle of it. I listened and slowly absorbed the atmosphere, finding myself telling Honey and Tamaki all about the United States and the people I had met. Time passed by and I nearly forgot about the picture and the broken glass.

"This is Molly. I met her in Boston the second year I was going to Harvard. She's obsessed with the 1980s, but she is a kind person and dear friend. Without her I don't think I could've learned English so quickly." I explained to Tamaki and Honey, who listened with the curiosity of children. Their eyes were sparkling as I showed them a picture of young girl wearing a complete eighties outfit, side ponytail, loose bright-colored tang top over a skin snug blouse, and abstract designed skirt. She was popping gum in the picture and was giving the camera a playfully seductive look. I rolled my eyes, remembering the last few years. I would have to tell the group about my American friend another time. "It's about 6:30 in the morning in New York. She's still asleep, but maybe one day I'll call her up and you guys can have a talk with her. Oh- don't think that this is normal American dress, ok? This is Molly's style and Molly's style only."

Abruptly, Tamaki tackled me from behind. "OOOOOOOH MYYYY SWEEEEEEEET DAUGHTER!!!!!! I AM SOOOOOO PROUUUUD THAT YOU HAVE A FEMALE COMPANIOOOOOOOOON!!!! FINALLY DADDY CAN REST AT EASE TO KNOW HIS LITTLE GIRL ISN'T HANGING AROUND WITH SNEAKY MEN!!"

Honey clapped his hands, "I want to meet her one day!"

"Well, she did tell me she'd come and visit me some time." I added. Honey's face lit up. The Host club was the same as ever, most of the members still loved meeting new people. "Tamaki I can't breathe again."

Tamaki released me, but his arm around my shoulder as well, emotionally saying, "Oh, Haruhi it's good to have the Host Club back together again."

"Most of the Host Club." Kyouya darkly added and the atmosphere collapsed slightly. Honey and Mori suddenly looked at me.

I hated how suddenly solemn the blonde lolita looked as he gazed at me, "Did they tell you about what's happened, Haru-chan? About Kao-chan and Hika-chan?"

I couldn't do anything, but nod. Honey ran a small hand through his hair and I noticed his posture straighten into a more mature stance. He crossed his arms and frowned, "Life's both changed and not changed, Haru-chan. We have companies and responsibilities. We have families and business partners. If only things didn't have to change so much when you were gone." His cute act was slipping to reveal the 26-year-old underneath. His changing image just added more effect to his words.

"Look… I know what's going on and I want to tell you right now that I want to do something to make things better." The four members of the host club all stared at me, as the words suddenly broke out, with grateful understanding. "I've seen the twins fight only once before over some petty misunderstanding and even then I was irritated and had to do something to stop them. Now, I've been gone for too long and this misunderstanding is on a completely different level. I'm going to change things. I'm going to bring things back to a peaceful normal, not this artificial system that you've become content with. I'm going to take advantage of what I learned in the States and raise all hell if I have to, to get Hikaru and Kaoru back together like they used to be."

The Suou came towards me at the end of my declaration. I pulled back expecting a flying hug or squeal or something foolishly random, but instead Tamaki bowed graciously. He took my hand and gently brought it to his lips, kissing it politely. My face felt hot at the sudden action and I stared at him in surprise. The three behind him stood quietly observing, light smiles gracing their features. "My Princess, thank you, we'll support you every step of the way."

I fell uncomfortable having Tamaki gaze at me with the look he used to give all his clients in high school. I could feel the unified power of the ex-host's support. They were getting together again for the sole purpose of helping the Hitachiin twins. They were passing the baton to me. Each had tried and failed at fixing the broken bond between the twins and now it was my turn. With their help, would I be able to do what they could not?

"Careful! Kohaku, Keisuke, watch the glass please! Ah- I said careful, you're only wearing socks." Tamaki released the hold of my hand and moved away from me at the sound of Kaoru's voice. Kyouya's posture relaxed, Honey's face broke into an effortless smile, and Mori raised his head and opened up. I was brought back to the thought of the broken picture frame and was the only one who rushed to the entryway of the den. When I got there I nearly collided with the twins.

Kohaku and Keisuke came to a stop before me, wide-awake and aware of their surroundings now. They looked up at me, identical eyes registering who I was. They were wearing a matching pair of silk tunics, high collared in the Chinese style. Kohaku wore a deep crimson tunic with an embroidered image of a phoenix upon his chest. Keisuke wore a deep sapphire tunic, an embroidered dragon on his. The two wore adorable white socks under their silk trousers, their small toes wiggling within them. The younger twin greeted me politely, "Oba-chan, hello. Papa nos dijo que usted come con nosotros. Es verdad?"

I tried to decipher whatever the young boy said, but his brother, who was in a better mood translated, "Otou-san told us you are eating dinner with us. Is that right?" Kohaku looked into my eyes and looked down. "Hi."

Smiling, I lowered myself to their level, "Yeah, I am. Is that ok with you?" Over their heads, their father was nowhere in sight.

"Oba-chan?" Kohaku pulled me back to them. He moved his socked feet sheepishly and glanced at me, "I got to tell you something. I'm sorry for being mean to you. Otou-san told me that I was rude and a bad boy. I said sorry, am I still a bad boy?"

Keisuke was quick to add, "Haku, Papa said you got to mean it…when you…. Um… ap…apo… what's that word again, Oba-chan?"

"Apologize." I answered.

"Yeah that one!" Keisuke nodded and I grinned at him. I move to his brother and gave him and understanding look.

The older three year old watched me and I noticed his father reappear with a dust pan and begin cleaning the broken glass himself. Kaoru stopped and his eyes fell on me. Sighing, he gazed his sons devotedly and continued with his work. I returned to Kohaku and placed a hand on his head, "It's ok; I forgive you Kohaku-kun. We need to get used to each other more that's all." The boy's face lit up with happiness and relief, "I know I won your little game, but I used to play that game all the time a long time ago. I just had a lot of practice."

Exchanging looks of surprise, the twins smiled with curiosity. They began to giggle adorably. I don't think I had ever heard the cutest thing. With this, they abruptly came up to me and gave me a big hug. "Thank you Oba-chan." They spoke uniformly. "The three of us will be friends now." Kohaku and Keisuke giggled and finally noticed the rest of their Oji-san's. The giggles turned into squeals and with a blur of blue and red, the new Hitachiins were gone.

I stood from my place and found Kaoru nowhere in sight again. Looking around, I walked into the den. He wasn't by the piano or fireplace. It wasn't long before I moved the door to the den covering the fifth wall. The Hitachiin was there and I paused, seeing him gazing silently at the frameless image of himself and Maria. Silence engulfed us. He didn't notice me at first, a weak smile on his face. The only sounds came from the boys greeting their Mori Oji-san and Honey Oji-san out in the hallway.

"Kaoru." I started. The man flinched and swiftly placed the picture face down on the table beside him. He blinked and regained his composure. Before he could react I explained, "I wanted to apologize… about the picture. I was going to get Rebekah for a broom or something, but Honey-Sempai and Mori-Sempai walked i-"

"It's ok." The younger twin overcame me. "It's the past, nothing more." I didn't know if the latter part of his words were about the broken glass or the picture. He was trying to make both look like they weren't important. Kaoru stepped away from the wall and placed the photo in his pocket before walking passed me towards the entryway. I wanted to say words of remorse-anything, but something told me that now wasn't the time. I would learn more as time went on.

By the time we returned to the hallway, Rebekah had just entered from the door at the far end of the corridor. She grinned and bowed, "Dinner's ready." Kaoru was quick to thank her and the Hitachiins of the house led us to dinner. My gaze fell on Kaoru as he walked and talked with Honey at the same time. He wore the mask of happiness once more, hiding any emotions he had had in the den, especially from his sons who were enjoying themselves in Mori's towering hold.

Tamaki appeared by my side instantly and placed his arm around my shoulders again. "It's going to be ok. I know you'll be able to help him. You're my wonderful daughter, of course."

I sighed as we entered the dining room. By the look on Kaoru's home and face, I had a lot of work to do. My thoughts ran widely in my head, _I hope so_…

* * *

And so the game begins. Yep, that's it for now. I made it long for everyone's enjoyment. Yay! Hope you guys enjoyed just more drama.

Thanks for reading and remember:

**TO REVIEW!!!** Click the link below and leave a comment!! PLEASE!!

Oh and I want to wish a VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY CLOSE FRIEND MAT, who made sure to point out that I used the incorrect name for Honey. I know Honey is the English altered version of his name, but I can't help it!! I finished this Chapter for you man!

**Next Time (In a Preview form): **Haruhi understands her responsibility and knows her goal, but where to start?

"What do you mean, your father's in Karuizawa!!? Where are you going to live!?"

"Well, I don't really know."

"What!? You need to have a place to live! Haruhi!! Come home with me."

"No!"

"Why doesn't she stay here with Kaoru, the boys, and Rebekah? There's more than enough room for her and Kaoru can get some extra help with caring for the boys."

"What?"

"WHAT!!!?"

"No… she doesn't need to do that. I can't force that on her; she just came back."

"That's right!!"

"It's too late to call for a hotel, most are full by this time of the evening. Haruhi, why don't you stay for the night, at least?"

"Absolutely not!!"

"Sure."

"What? Wait, you don't have to… the boys might be bothersome."

"It's fine. I don't mind spending time with the twins a bit more."

"Uh…ok… if you're sure."

"I'm sure."

"NOOOOOOOOOOO!! HARUHIIIIIIIIIII!"

----Stay Tuned!----


	5. The Game's Little Twist

I'M REALLY SORRY FOR THE LATE UPDATE. SCHOOL AND LIFE REALLY GOT IN THE WAY, BUT SUMMER'S HERE AND ALL IS OPEN AGAIN. I WILL BE UPDATING FASTER FROM NOW ON!

CHAPTER 4!!! Wow, I'm surprised that this fic has survived this far! I just want to say THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU ALL!!! Thanks for reading and most importantly thanks for reviewing! I mean this is amazing. I love your guys' reviews, especially the longer ones that tell me how you really feel. It inspires me to write, so to all of you dedicated readers out there, my dearest gratitude!! OK now on with the fic!

**Last Time:** Haruhi has made her decision. It's her turn to save Kaoru before the young Hitachiin loses himself to all his extreme sacrifices. How far will Kaoru go before he realizes that enough is enough? Can Haruhi help him and Hikaru?

Disclaimer: I do not and have never owned OHSHC. I also don't own Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens or Tell Tale Heart by Edgar Allen Poe! I wish I did, but then I wouldn't be here if that was the case.

Title: It Takes Two to Play the Game

Author: Yuzume Mikien (Whoo I'm back)

Pairings: TamakixHaruhi, hinted HikaruxHaruhi, HikaruxOC, KaoruxOC, MorixOC, HoneyxOC, maybe even KaoruxHaruhi if you squint. Oooh where's Kyouya… poor bachelor.

Rating: Pg-13 to M, just to be safe.

Warnings: Language, and suggestive themes, but for now, keeping the content at a safe PG-13.

Genre: Drama, Anguish

**PLEASE REVIEW** I love reviews and what you guys think. If you have any ideas for the storyline I'm always open for more. Oh… please don't flame. Constructively criticize, but don't flame.

**Note: **I am fluent in English and speak enough Spanish to get by. Japanese, French, and German don't come naturally to me. The fic in context has the group speaking in Japanese with me emphasizing the English parts.

I would like it as authentic as possible, but I'm not a translator like Kaoru.

**English---****German**---_**French**__---Thoughts_---Espanol---Japanese

**Second Note**: Maria Angelina Del Rosario Ohtori is Roman Catholic. There is a reference to heaven in this chapter as Kaoru has raised his children the way their mother would have wanted. It is unclear to anyone's religion in this Anime, especially as Tamaki is French and France is a relatively Christian country and Kyouya is Japanese... so would that make him Buddhist? (Heck I have no idea what the Hitachiin's religion is.) Please don't mind the references made in this chapter.

That's all for now.

Chapter Four- ACTION!

* * *

Chapter Four: The Game's Little Twist

Normal POV

The clock in Kyouya's bedroom was irritating. No-irritating was an understatement; the clock was infuriating!! It sat peacefully on Kyouya's wall over the heads of everyone- a large, simple, white square box with numbers and hands on it. The fact of the matter was that in Kyouya's loft of a bedroom the watch could be seen and HEARD from the other side of the room. The watch told the time to everyone in the bedroom and downstairs in the youngest son's common room. To the Ohtori family, the clock had been in the family for years so it had become nothing more than another household accessory.

But to Tamaki Suou, who came to visit the Ohtori home many times, it was the most annoying thing in the world.

Tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock!

The constant clicking of Kyouya's keyboard was fine, but that damn clock aggravated the normally calm blonde. It just kept ticking.

Tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock!

_How could anything get done with that kind of noise?_ Tamaki sighed and thought to himself, sitting at his best friend's working desk in the boy's bedroom. He shook his head and ran his hand through his gelled back hair. It was difficult to concentrate on the computer screen in front of him. It was challenging to dedicate himself to the excel sheets that were presented to him on the screen when the clock across the room just kept ticking the seconds by. He was fully aware time was passing, but he didn't give a damn about every single second. Sighing again, Tamaki ran both his hands through his styled locks, ruining his hair's well-kept appearance.

Abruptly, chuckling came gently from the bed, where the Ohtori silently worked. Black eyes met violet as the Shadow King gazed at the suffering Host King in amusement, "Stocks getting to you already? Come now Tamaki, you've yet to delve deep into the subject."

The blonde boy frowned and looked back, "It's your dang clock. How the heck can you work when it's ticking up a storm? This profit percentage increase and net market decrease is hard, but Kyouya I can't concentrate!"

"Try harder then." Kyouya simply replied before returning to his work. His eyes fell on his own screen that held a more complex set of diagrams and statistics. He fell to working again until:

"Gah!" The blonde dropped his head on the desk and grabbed his head and growled, "Damn sound, make it stop!"

Glancing up, Kyouya shook his head and picked up a large pink eraser from a folder at his side. With a sigh he threw it at the Suou, the eraser hitting the man atop the head. "Keep working, you know well enough that your father and grandmother exile you here to work because they have faith that I will make you do so. Now, stop complaining and do something."

Tamaki sat up, rubbing his head, "But Okaa-san!" The Ohtori rolled his eyes at the nickname, "You don't understand. Your clock is just getting to me. I mean it always has, but with this type of work I just can't understand any of it when something is loudly ticking in the background."

Tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock!

"Can't you turn it off… anything?" Tamaki queried. The raven-haired man sitting on the bed in front of him gave him an unconvinced look from over his spectacles. He was lucky that Kyouya was in a good mood or his friend wouldn't have taken the time to listen. "Okaa-san can't you hear it?"

Letting out a deep breath, Kyouya stopped typing and remained still, listening to his obnoxious companion's sake. Seconds came by as he listened, eyes flying to the clock on the opposite wall. "Do you?" The Suou asked again.

Tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock!

Tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock!

"No." Kyouya finally answered unsympathetically, though he had heard differently. "Now get back to your work. I'm not your high school financial advisor anymore so get working before I inform your father that you're wasting precious work time complaining about clocks."

"Kyouya!! The ticking!"

Finally, the Ohtori reacted with more than a shake of the head. He stood and placed his laptop on his bed before strolling to Tamaki's side. Large purple puppy dog eyes gazed up at him, begging for the man to do something. "Tamaki, did you kill a man or frighten yourself reading Edgar Allen Poe again? Either you're being exceptionally irritating today or you're going insane. The Tell Tale Heart speaks otherwise. A clock's tick isn't very different from a human heart, now is it?"

Tamaki scowled back, "Kyouya stop that! Stop using Nekozawa references!! I'm not crazy and you're not Nekozawa."

"I know." Kyouya replied swiftly before taking hold of both sides of his friend's head and turning it towards the computer screen, "Go back to work."

The young man left to return to his seat on the bed, but the Suou kept on with his grievance, "Kyouya! I can't get to work when your clock's ticking."

Gaze on the large pile of work still left for the man to do, Kyouya spun around and returned to the blonde's side. "If you can't work then leave." With a playful seriousness, Kyouya kicked over the chair that his companion was on. Tamaki flew back, but before falling he grabbed the Ohtori by the tie and pulled Kyouya down as well. There was a large crash as the two fell straight unto the floor.

Regaining his composure first, Tamaki found himself on his back with Kyouya's office chair on top of him. (Y/M: I'm sorry, but there are so many yaoi references I can make with this scene.) Kyouya had flown over him and was lying a few feet away by the wall of the loft. His glasses had fallen off and were nowhere in sight. Tamaki pushed the chair off himself and sat up, wincing as his back popped in a couple of places. The Ohtori got up unto his knees as well and gave the blonde a harsh glare. A moment flew by as the two friends gazed at each other before Tamaki broke out laughing. Unfortunately for the raven-haired boy the laugh was nothing more but contagious and Kyouya chuckled openly in return.

Kyouya got to his feet and dusted himself off. He walked to where Tamaki sat and kicked the boy down just as he used to do during high school, the blonde laughing even more in return. "That's enough rough housing. I know stocks don't come easy to you, but your father's told you many times before that if you want to inherit the Suou company then you need to get working. Trust me, you'll need the workload practice." The Ohtori frowned in the direction of the document pile on his bed before smirking down at the blonde, "CEO to even a branch of your family's company is stressing enough, and I should know- I am one."

Tamaki stopped laughing to add, "Yes, and I'm so proud of my Okaa-san for making such a dream come true—Ow that hurts, Kyouya!"

Both boys laughed at each other's antics before Kyouya allowed Tamaki to stand up. They had to spend several minutes searching for the Ohtori's spectacles, which had flown off somewhere in the fall and the man was useless without. As Tamaki searched in the corners of the room and Kyouya looked silently under the desk, a sound overcame the ticking of the clock. A short yet cute ring tone echoed into the room and Tamaki gazed up from his search. Standing, Kyouya picked up his companion's phone from its place on the desk. Smirking with unhidden amusement, the Ohtori declared, "When –if you ever become your father's successor, please do me a favor and change your ring tone. A more robust and masculine ring tone would suffice."

The man casually answered the blonde's phone as Tamaki went back to work, looking for Kyouya's glasses. "Good afternoon, you've just reached the mobile phone of Mr. Tamaki Suou. How may I help you?"

"I found them!" The blonde yelled and held them up in the air for Kyouya to see. A large smile was plastered on his face when he gazed to his friend for approval. The grin faltered when he saw the sudden hard expression on his companion's face. "Kyouya…?"

Black eyes narrowing, Kyouya was answering the caller in a harsh inhumanly cruel voice. "You're wasting your time. You know perfectly well that his grandmother and father won't allow him to help you." With these words, Kyouya hung up emotionlessly; all form of happiness gone from his features.

He placed the phone back down and walked to the blonde, taking the glasses from Tamaki in silence. Getting onto his bed, he fell to work again as if nothing had happened. Blinking in confusion, Tamaki returned to the desk and picked up his phone, "Kyouya, who was that?"

"No one important."

"What do you mean no one important? This is Kaoru's cell phone number." Tamaki said glancing at the caller id of the recent call.

"Your point?"

This time it was Tamaki's turn to react without a smile. He spoke uncomfortably, "Why did you hang up on him? What's your problem?"

Kyouya's eyes were still their cruel black; he readjusted his glasses on his face, "Because I thought it necessary."

Pulling back, Tamaki expressed further confusion, "What? I don't understand."

"You don't need to." The Ohtori watched the blonde apathetically. Tamaki began to redial, "There's no point. You can't do anything."

"I still don't understand." Tamaki replied and held the phone to his ear. When someone answered, Tamaki fell into his mask of happiness again, "Hello! This is Tamaki!"

Instead of a young man's voice a woman had answered, "Um… sure." Tamaki felt his mask falling, "Kaoru… someone's on the phone… it's Tamaki-sama."

As Tamaki waited, he noticed how Kyouya gazed at him dangerously. What was his problem? "Hello, Tamaki?"

"Kaoru! Hey, how are you!?" Tamaki returned to his conversation. "Sorry, I wasn't available last time, but I was searching-"

"Is Kyouya Ohtori with you?" The Hitachiin sounded frustrated and tired all at once.

"Well, yes, but-"

"Then there's no point talking to me." There was a pause. Tamaki felt his eyes widen in surprise, "I apologize for wasting your time-"

"Wait, Kaoru!" Tamaki didn't understand what was going on. He chuckled uncomfortably, "What's going on? Did you have an argument with Kyouya? He isn't really giving me any details."

"No."

"Don't bother. He seems able to take care of this problem on his own." Tamaki glanced in Kyouya's direction at his cold statement. Violet eyes narrowing, Tamaki shook his head.

"Is there an Ohtori-Hitachiin Family Feud going on or something?"

"More like an illegitimate child no one seems to care about."

"What?" Tamaki yelled, but by this time Kaoru had hung up. "Kaoru?!"

Kaoru's final statement took a few moments to register. The word 'illegitimate' had hit a personal note and Tamaki spun in Kyouya's direction. "Kyouya, what's going on here?"

The Ohtori merely stared back. Mute.

"Kyouya?" Tamaki came to his companion, who worked and stared at him all at once on the bed, "He just hung up. You need to tell me what's going on here. I don't understand- I mean- I do, but this isn't making sense… you-"

Coal black eyes meeting violet, Kyouya glared before curtly stating, "It's better you don't understand and stop asking. You have quite a bit of work to do. Why don't you get the hang of creating an online spread sheet before you think of less personal matters."

The host king merely stared back. He couldn't believe his ears. Kyouya, Okaa-san, was treating another member of the old high school host club like some sort of stranger. Tamaki didn't know whether to feel angry or confused. He had to get answers. "Kaoru- he said something about an illegitimate child?"

"Well then I don't have any need to explain to you anything more, now do I?" Kyouya returned to typing, his hands skillfully flying across the keyboard. He ignored the blonde standing surprised before him. Seconds passed; the clock on the other end of the room counting the passing time.

Tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock!

Time gave Tamaki the ability to contemplate. "Kaoru got a girl pregnant? No… way." He couldn't help but chuckle awkwardly once more, "But… Kyouya… why are you so angry? I mean this is Kaoru we're talking about. It's not like you're his twin brother."

When the spectacle-wearing boy didn't respond Tamaki continued, "I would understand if you were angry if something happened in your family, but I thought that problems that occurred in other families don't matter to you. Besides, it's an illegitimate child. We're not talking about a murder or anything. You don't have to be so annoyed."

Abruptly, Kyouya slammed his laptop shut, before moving his attention to his companion again, "You just don't get it, do you?" The Ohtori's voice was dripping with hate, which made Tamaki pull back. "Why wouldn't I be angry!? When someone so close would be so stupid!?"

"What…?"

"Get this through your thick head Tamaki!" The rage that came flying out of Kyouya's mouth in verbal form seemed to have been pent up for quite a while. He couldn't control it. "Kaoru's being a brainless twit and because of it there's no reason for anyone to pity the imbecile. My cousin- my damn responsibility- screwed up and instead of getting the punishment she knows that she deserves, she's being fawned over by some younger brother who has nothing better to do but pick up after his twin whenever the fool sleeps with every and any damn girl- no matter whose family she belongs to."

Words came flying out of the Ohtori's voice. "They both know that they'll be disowned; that no one will help them, especially with a child. Now you're being emotional again, wanting to help any way you can. Well, understand this now. Stop it! I'm not stupid enough to let them pull you down too."

"Pull me down?" Tamaki blinked incredulously, "What are you saying? Kaoru's being responsible for his actions. If he feels ready to father a child with Maria then it's the best way."

A crossroads had been reached between the two friends, "You're not listening. If either of them were actually thinking practically, let alone responsibly then they would've gotten rid of it by now. They no full well what wedlock due to an illegitimate child does to families of our social level. If they weren't so foolish they'd understand that the best possible solution would be to be rid of the accident and continue on with their lives. Besides, it's not even Ka-"

"Accident!?" The blonde was uncharacteristically livid. "What the hell are you saying? Kyouya, listen to yourself. You don't know what you're saying!"

Kyouya stood from his place on the bed and sighed, "I know perfectly what I'm saying. I'm saying that the only right way in fixing this accident is if they would just get their heads out of the clouds and get rid of the product of a lustful night. There's no room for screw-ups like a bastard child, no matter what Kaoru says. Illegitimate children won't do Kaoru and Maria any good, accidents like them never do!"

Silence engulfed the men as they stared each other with a mix of anger and distrust. Never had the two been so open emotionally with each other; Kyouya had always been calm and collected while Tamaki had kept his happy or dramatic depression constant, no matter what either had felt that day. Now they were in the midst of a mute battle. Strangely, Tamaki felt the need to hit his best friend of eight years to snap the Ohtori out of the apathetic world he had fallen in, but instead of physically assaulting the young Kyouya, Tamaki said something that hurt his companion tenfold.

"I was illegitimate. Does that mean my mother was stupid too?"

This time it was Kyouya's turn to gaze back in surprise. He stood before the blonde as if he has just been slapped in the face.

"My father must have been pretty smart to let my grandmother persuade him to leave my mother and I in France. Like you said, I couldn't have done him any good." Tamaki laughed coldly, "And maybe I never will."

Before Kyouya could react, Tamaki was on his way down from the loft and into the common room below. He ignored the unfinished work on his laptop and his companion, clearly offended. Black eyes followed his retreating form as guilt once again filled the Ohtori's system. Kyouya watched as the blonde began to leave. He didn't really know what to do in a situation like this. The realization of his words and actions felt like his body had suddenly been submerged in freezing water.

Kyouya didn't register his next actions, but by the time Tamaki was at the door to exit his room he was already calling out. "Tamaki!"

The blonde was empathetic enough to glance back. He had never gotten so angry at being called an illegitimate child, but hearing Kaoru in a similar position as his own father had been had made him snap. Violet gaze rising to meet Kyouya he abruptly extended his hands to catch a small packet of documents being thrown at him. He looked at the group of documents covered in various prices. At first he thought the Ohtori was actually giving him work, but Kyouya was staring back at him with a slight tinge of guilt in his features.

"My family's been monitoring Kaoru's credit card at the Hitachiins' request. It's supposed to be my job to cancel his card so that he can't do anything, but I won't be able to do that when you have the paperwork, now can I?" Tamaki listened closely, "He and Maria are staying at a hotel at the other end of the city. If you want to help them then I advise you to do so before anyone finds out. The name and address of the hotel should be the last credit card entry."

Tamaki didn't reply verbally, but nodded in acknowledgement. With this, he turned and left the Ohtori to contemplate on his guilt…

An hour later, Tamaki found himself rushing up the stairs of a small hotel at the edge of the city. He had received the room number from the clerk downstairs and kept his eyes open for Kaoru and Maria's room. After a moment he found it and knocked on its door quickly.

When no one answered he knocked again and spoke, "It's Tamaki, open up!"

Seconds came and went, Tamaki lifted his hand to knock once more, but the door finally came ajar, a beautiful young woman peaking out from behind it. She looked up at the blonde shyly, her black eyes showing suppressed apprehension. The girl was nearly still a child, nineteen, freshly out of high school. She was already showing the signs of her condition, her face pale compared to her normally dark complexion. "Tamaki-sama?"

"Maria, is Kaoru with you?" Tamaki asked gently.

Nodding, the girl opened the door further and stepped aside to let the Suou pass. She was unusually quiet. On the rare occasions Tamaki had seen her, she had been a confident and knowledgeable young woman. He frowned, watching her careful movements. When he entered, Maria led him to the small alcove of a kitchenette in the hotel room, where Kaoru paced as he talked on the phone.

"I know damn it! I heard you the first time!" Walking out of a tense conversation into another, Tamaki was surprised to find the stressed younger twin just as angry as he, himself had been on the ride from Kyouya's home. The Hitachiin didn't notice the host king's presence; "I'm not begging Otou-san and Okaa-san for help. All I'm asking for is that they stop making this so damn hard! I know I screwed up! I know they don't want to talk to me, but could you just ask them to stop canceling my account numbers… That doesn't make a difference! I don't care if I've been disowned. Those accounts belonged solely to me and held the money I've been making since we graduated high school. No! Hikaru! Those held my profits… MY profits. Why don't you understand?"

The younger twin paused as he listened to the other line. "Calm down!? CALM DOWN!? Hikaru, how the hell can I calm down when I can't even feed the woman holding my child with the emergency money I've saved for the passed few years. Otou-san had no right to remove my rights to it… You know they won't listen to me!! Hikaru listen… no listen to me… Hikaru! God Onii-san, how many times do I have to tell you I can't do anything anymore!? My accounts are empty or locked. I have no rights to any of the Hitachiin stock. And I'm not stupid enough to not know that someone's going to cancel my credit card by the end of the week… Do you even know how hard it is to get a job in Tokyo!?" The longer the boy talked the more his expression hardened. Sweat trickled down from stress and his eyes were glassy with tears threatening to fall with further frustration. "It's not going to kill you to ask Otou-san and Okaa-san to return the money to me… Hikaru, I need the money! I have nothing! Hikaru I need you to do this for me. I'm begging you! Please, tell me you'll do it. Promise me you'll do it!"

Finally, gold met violet as Kaoru hesitated and glanced from his spot in the kitchenette. He narrowed his eyes at Tamaki's form, but before he could react to the blonde, he suddenly slammed his hand against one of the kitchenette's cupboards. There was a large bang and both observers could do nothing but flinch as fist hit wood. "Try!? TRY!? I know you Hikaru! I know TRY isn't good enough. You need to promise me, DAMN IT!" Kaoru growled harshly and ran his hand through his hair in frustration. His appendage was red from the cupboard, but he was too preoccupied by his brother to notice that it was slowly bruising. His voice was becoming hoarse, "How many times do I need to tell you, I… have… nothing!?"

As Tamaki watched the Hitachiin, he noticed how the young man's form shook as he paced. His hands trembled violently and his head shook in pent up aggravation. Tamaki had never known Kaoru had been subject to bouts of anxiety such as this. Abruptly, Kaoru stumbled nearly falling over, but catching himself against the kitchen counter. Tamaki came forward to act, but Maria was faster. She rushed to Kaoru's side and helped him stand. Slowly, the female Ohtori guided her taller partner to the couch on the other end of the room. Tamaki followed the couple, observing Kaoru collapse on the couch and pull Maria down with him. After a minute, Kaoru shook his head. He placed his elbows on his knees and held his head, "I give up… Do whatever you want…Help me or not, I don't care. You're their only son anyway, it's not like you'll get disowned or anything." Following his last words, Kaoru hung up, snapped his cell phone shut, and threw it unceremoniously on the coffee table. He covered his face with his hands and gave out an infuriated sigh. Removing his hands, he revealed his face wet from a couple of stray tears. Overlooking the normal show of weakness, Maria took Kaoru's bruising hand in hers, the twin now looking with cold confidence at the blonde. "Now… what do you want?"

Tamaki frowned back and answered simply before throwing the packet, Kyouya had given him, onto the table as well. "I want to help you." He caught the suspicion in the other boy's face, "I'm not letting that child of yours end up like me."

With these words, Kaoru's hard look softened as he stared into the blonde's face. He didn't know what to say or how to react. Maria was in a bad state and he wasn't in a better one; they needed all the help they could get. Sighing, he took a deep breath and made up his mind. Sluggishly, Kaoru nodded and spoke, "If you really want to help then please… get us out of here."

Unbeknownst to him, the Hitachiin was to regret his request, for the consequences of his actions would be the end of the only girl he ever loved.

**********

Nearly five years later, the same blonde and red head sat calmly at the large dining table of the large western home on top of the hill in Tokyo, along with the rest of the group consisting of Kaoru's twin sons, the guilty Ohtori, the two dojo owners; Mori and Honey, and a young Fujioka who had come home from college. The atmosphere in the room was light and happy aside from the fact that there was one member of the group missing, Hikaru Hitachiin.

"What's this?"

"Fish, Kohaku."

"What kind of fish?"

"Tuna, Keisuke."

"Why we eating it?"

"Because it's good for you, Kohaku."

"Why's it good for you?"

"Because it's part of the Food Pyramid, Keisuke."

"What's the-"

"-Food Pyramid?"

"Boys…" With a deep sigh, the twenty-four year old Kaoru turned to his sons and gave them a gentle, yet stern, look. Dinner had just been served and the steaming plates of chicken and fancy tuna covered the table. Kohaku and Keisuke looked innocently at their father, smiles lighting up their faces. Their identical gazes had no effect on their father who watched them with indifference. "Please, eat your dinner, boys. Comen cena ahora, hijos."

A fit of giggles filled the room as the pair failed to take Kaoru seriously. The rest of the room fell silent as their Oji-sans and Oba-chan watched the two, entertained. The whole party of ex-host members was at ease and their observation of the new generation of Hitachiin twins felt like a humorous show that accompanied the meal. Kohaku glanced at his brother, who glanced back. Simultaneously, both looked down at their small plates full of rice and tuna. The giggling stopped as the two stared silently at their food, before looking up and saying, "We don't like this."

Kaoru frowned, annoyed, yet fully aware that he'd be hearing those words at least once that night. His paternal patience not weakening at the least, he shook his head, "You never tried it before, how do you know you don't like it."

"Cuz' we do." The brothers answered at the same time.

"Eat your food, boys."

"But Papa!"

Suddenly, Tamaki reacted in support of the toddlers, "Oh, come now Kaoru, give them something different. They said they don't like it." He smiled brightly and bounced happily in his seat beside Haruhi, who watched the scene quietly. "Aren't they just adorable fighting for their rights?"

Kaoru moved his sight to the speaking blonde, his face boasting a mix of anger and exasperation. The young parent also had foreseen at least one of the boys' many Uncles speaking out in their favor. "As I said before, they haven't tried what is on their plates. Kohaku, Keisuke, please eat your food. It's good for you and tasty. Look, Haruhi Oba-chan likes it."

A pair of gold amber gazes fell on the brunette who was eating her food in silent enjoyment. Haruhi loved good food. She looked up from her plate and nodded, "Yes, it's very tasty. You won't be able to eat anything better than this."

In reaction the two quickly shook their heads, "But we don't want to."

Kaoru turned and watched his son with a cold disapproving gaze. "That's it." He hissed in slight annoyance. Rolling his eyes, the young Hitachiin moved forward in his seat towards the twins who sat beside him in their booster seats. He grabbed Kohaku's red bowl of tuna and rice, scooping a small spoon full of the dish. With one hand holding the utensil and the other underneath to catch any fallen pieces of food, Kaoru moved the spoon towards the older child's mouth. "Say 'Ah', Kohaku."

Defiantly, the young red head turned his head away at the incoming spoon. "No."

After another sigh, Kaoru attempted once more. "Kohaku, come ahora!"

The boy continued to shake his head; his mouth shut tight. "Um-hm!"

"We don't want to eat that, Papa." Another plea came from Keisuke who watched quietly. He moved his large amber gaze to the rest of the people at the table, giving them the cutest look imaginable, "Make Papa not make us eat it, please." The little one pleaded.

Haruhi looked up to see the toddler imploring the rest of the group with his eyes. Beside her Tamaki was nearly in tears, emotionally moved by the child's appeal. The rest of the table reacted to this tactic in different ways. As the brunette glanced at the other seated members of the meal, she found Honey observing with a pitying "Awww." Near the lolita, Mori actually gave the two a worried look and beside him Kyouya boasted a similar expression before looking away. In the end, she even found herself feeling sorry for the twins. Finally, Haruhi decided to voice out her feelings on the subject, "Um Kaoru, maybe it be best… if you gave the two… something else."

What she got in reply was something she hadn't expected. Kaoru returned her question with a hard stare that seemed to be an equivalent to a verbal, "That did not help at all, Haruhi." Though he remained silent, the young father leaned back in his chair and placed the bowl on the table. His sons watched him carefully. After a few moments of silence, from which the table thought he had given in, the Hitachiin cleared his throat and continued in his trials to feed his children, aside from what everyone else seemed to have asked. Instead of repeating his tactic with Kohaku, he sternly ordered the younger twin. "Keisuke Gabriel Del Rosario Ohtori Hitachiin, you will eat your food right now or I'm taking Tortuga out of your room. Do you want that?" As if by magic, little Keisuke shook his head quickly and shoved a spoon full of tuna in his mouth. A gentle and victorious grin graced the man's lips as he glanced at the rest of the group and back at the younger Hitachiin. Watching Keisuke chew and swallow without complaint, the father patted his son on the head, "See, now that wasn't that bad, was it? Te gusta la comida, mi hijo? I knew you'd like the food. Now, go on and eat for Papa. Oh, and stop using that face of yours to get what you want." He added with a chuckle.

Keisuke blinked his large eyes and nodded. He ate calmly while his twin brother continued to rebelliously deny their father's meal. The two personas were extremely apparent and if the twin's had played the 'Which One's Kohaku Game' almost anyone could win. Kaoru returned to the first boy, his expression hardening. "Kohaku Rafael Del Rosario Ohtori Hitachiin, you heard me several times now, please eat your food." Picking the spoon back up, Kaoru attempted to feed the first-born.

"No, I don't want to!" Kohaku, this time, pushed his parent's hand away.

"I wasn't joking when I said I'd take Tortuga."

The toddler crossed his arms stubbornly, "Oh yeah- well- go ahead and take him! I don't care!"

There was a sudden silence that fell over the room. Kaoru backed to sit straight in his seat, his eyes expressing that the twin had stepped over a very fine line. Haruhi glanced around and found the rest of the group's attention on the scene before them. Keisuke looked at his brother with his mouth open in shock.

Several long seconds came and went. With a heavy sigh, Kaoru dropped the spoon into the bowl and turned to his own food nonchalantly. "Ok, if that is what you want. I'll take him out of your room after dinner." His voice came out evenly and it was clear he was using reverse psychology on the boy. Kohaku glared, but his posture faltered when his father had finished the statement.

"Haku, come tu comida-Papa dijo… Por favor." Keisuke begged his brother gently.

"No! Yo no necesito tener Tortuga en mi dormitorio." Kohaku retorted half-heartedly.

Most of the group may have not understood what was being said, but it was clear that the difference in the twin's personalities was a large problem for the young parent. Kaoru shook his head, "Ay dios mio!" He called out desperately (the act he was pulling becoming clearer as he spoke). "Oh, just hearing that makes me sad. I wonder how Mama must feel in heaven. I think you might make her sad, Haku."

Haruhi looked at Kohaku curiously. 'Mama?' Just the mere utterance of the word had made the boy stiffen, amber eyes growing wide in recognition. Absently, Kaoru placed the bowl of tuna and rice in its place before the older twin. And without a further word from any of the Hitachiins, Kohaku placed a spoonful in his mouth. The twins now eating, Kaoru placed his attention on the rest of the group. "I'm sorry. They're picky eaters."

For the second time that day, Haruhi felt the surprise that the younger Hitachiin twin was a father. She had seen how differently everyone had become as each became more successful. She noticed what attributes had matured in the young men around her, but for some reason, compared to the other fathers in the group such as Honey and Mori, Kaoru had matured in a completely dissimilar way. The red head seemed to have had the traits even in high school. The ability to sacrifice strength to look weak for the older twin during the Brotherly Love act the two had played; the long patience around a stubborn brother, who couldn't understand the elements of relationships other than his own with his twin; the unconditional love that accepted all of Hikaru's mistakes and weaknesses –even his children-.

The dinner continued without further interruption. Light conversation was exchanged about the last five years that each ex-host had spent paving his/her own road in life. Though Kaoru did not verbally say much about the past, he did listen intently. The dinner went smoothly until Rebekah had entered declaring that dessert would be served shortly. With that thought in mind, Haruhi was quick to ask Tamaki a question that had been plaguing her since the beginning of the meal.

"Tamaki, what does Tortuga mean?" The word had sounded Spanish, but Haruhi could not place her finger on the meaning.

The blonde's violet eyes filled with thought for a moment and he nodded, "Oh, that means turtle, Haruhi"

The twenty four year old smiled with understanding. "Oh, so the twins have a pet turtle?" Haruhi reiterated

"Well-"

Abruptly a large bell echoed into the dining hall. A grandfather clock at one end of the room rung out ten times, marking the current time, 10:00 pm. The dinner had continued without interruption and time had flown quickly by. Haruhi looked around, "Wow, it's that late already?"

Everyone's attention fell upon the brunette. She appeared worried for a moment and fell into deep contemplation, while the rest of the group looked on. "Is there a problem, Haruhi?" Kaoru queried gently. His sons were under the table playing as they were done with their meals. Their light giggles coming from underneath the seating arrangement.

The lawyer shook her head. "No. Everything's fine, Kaoru. I just realized I'm a little short of time."

Before she could elaborate, Tamaki was already speaking. "Oh, yes, you still need to catch the evening train home to your father's don't you, Haruhi?"

There was a moment's pause before the girl answer, "No, well, not to dad's."

"What?" Came the question from both Tamaki and Kaoru.

Haruhi stood from her seat slowly. She smiled and bowed, "Thanks for having me over Kaoru, but I really should leave now, I still have a hotel to find."

Tamaki was on his feet in seconds as well. "Wait? A hotel? What do you mean a hotel? Why aren't you visiting your father?"

"I will, but dad lives in Karuizawa now with Mizu-chan. He's been co-running the bed and breakfast since graduation because he didn't want to be coming home to a lonely apartment. He had the plan of selling the apartment since forever so after I moved to the States he did just that." The news seemed old to 'the natural', but the host king was disoriented.

Haruhi stretched. She was slightly disappointed about missing dessert for the dinner had been amazing. But she had to find a hotel before all the rooms were filled (that was the problem with big cities like Tokyo). "What do you mean, your father's in Karuizawa? Where are you going to live?"

After a second's thought, Haruhi shrugged, bluntly stating, "I don't know at the moment. I guess I'll just have to figure it out along the way. I'll just live in a hotel and then find an apartment on my own somewhere." For the commoner it seemed pretty simple.

Unfortunately the blonde was up on his feet. "Okaa-san do you hear that? Our daughter is trying to find a place on her own! That won't do at all!" Tamaki exclaimed in Kyouya's direction.

The Ohtori readjusted his spectacles, "Well, if Haruhi is certain in her desires for her own living space, I don't see any problem in her doing so." He replied simply.

Shaking his head, Tamaki kept on. Haruhi rolled her eyes, as he cried, "No! You shouldn't be made to stay in some indecent hotel on your living expenses!"

She glared at him, "Hey, what does that supposed to mean? Just because I wasn't able to afford much in high school-"

"Correction, you couldn't afford anything in high school. Not even a new uniform. God, that sweater vest was atrocious." The Hitachiin twin playfully broke his own silence, reminiscing better days. "That washboard chest of yours didn't help either."

"Kaoru!" The father turned his attention on checking on his sons under the table; when a pair of brown and violet looks fiercely fell in his direction.

Haruhi crossed her arms, "Look, I'm completely fine. You don't need to be a hero, Tamaki-sempai. I can take care of myself-"

"Come home with me!" The Suou declared as if it was the only alternative. The woman in front of him pulled back, a faint blush filling her cheeks. How she hated how provocative Tamaki's words would be. There was a loud thump, as Kaoru had gotten up from his spot watching the twins and hit his head on the table in surprise. The Hitachiin grabbed his head as the other three members of the host club watched on with wide eyes.

"Uh-oh… Papa hit his head." The pair of toddlers recited unanimously in a fit of giggles.

"NO! I am not going home with you. Are you crazy?" Haruhi knew the second statement was useless. She knew everyone in the host club had been insane in their own right.

"But Haruhi!" The blonde returned.

Kyouya looked on in silence. Mori and Honey had stood up as well, pulling on their coats. The Ohtori sighed and left his seat, strolling in Kaoru's direction. While he did this, the exchange between Haruhi and Tamaki continued. Kyouya stood behind Kaoru, eyes falling on the twins under the table, who were giggling uncontrollably. Kaoru's attention was now on the arguing pair, while the raven-haired man watched the two below the dining area pull out Tortuga. A smirk fell upon the Ohtori's lips, an idea coming to his head.

"I'm sorry Tamaki, but I would be more comfortable staying somewhere else with someone… less energetic-" Haruhi explained.

"Why don't you stay with Kaoru and the boys then." A silence fell over the room as the Shadow King voiced out suddenly. "Besides, it'll do Rebekah some good to have another female companion in the house. Kaoru would be very obliged to have another helping hand the boys as well."

"Hold on, what?" Kaoru glanced up. Amber eyes showing clear disorientation, Kaoru quickly raised his hands in denial, "No, no. Haruhi, you don't have to do anything of that sort. You just came back."

"That's right!!" Tamaki added harshly glaring at the Shadow King.

Sighing, Kyouya nodded, "Yes, but it might be too late for Haruhi to get a hotel at a reasonable price this late at night. You know how pricey it is for late check-ins."

"I don't mind the extra charge." Haruhi explained. "It's not that bad."

Tamaki turned on the brunette again, "Haruhi. I will not let you go to some faraway hotel. I won't let you live in this man's house as well." With an obvious wave of the hand, Tamaki made it clear that Kaoru (a father or not) was still not trusted.

Rolling her eyes, the brunette backed away from the blonde. Her gaze looked passed him and fell on Kyouya a distance away, standing behind Kaoru silently. She came to a stop and noticed the Ohtori give her a quick glance. Discreetly looking at Kaoru and returning to the lawyer with a worried expression, Kyouya clearly showed what he wanted the girl to do. Realization hitting, Haruhi couldn't believe what Kyouya wanted. "On second thought…" She paused finding Kyouya nod in approval, "Maybe I'll-"

Suddenly, the door to the kitchen flew open as Rebekah came in with a large bowl of chocolate pudding. She came bouncing in energetically, not knowing of the problem at hand. "Dessert's ready!" She declared, walking toward Haruhi and Tamaki to place the bowl down.

"Rebekah-" Kaoru began, but he was cut off by Kohaku and Keisuke crawling out from under the table in the exact location the maid was coming.

"Dessert!!" The twins yelled in excitement, jumping up from their hiding spot in front of the girl.

Kyouya stood back, hands held behind him, just as each step of his plan fell into place.

One. There was sudden scream as Rebakah jumped back to avoid from running into the boys and their pet, Totuga, which Haku held in his hands.

Two. The clumsy maid tripped as she stepped back, her arms flying up dramatically.

Three. The bowl of dessert abruptly spilling, chocolate pudding flying everywhere, especially on Tamaki and Haruhi who had been closest to the tripping woman.

Four. Rebekah would be on the ground with an empty bowl. Haruhi would be covered in a layer of pudding. Tamaki would be a chocolate-covered-idiot. And the twins:

Five: Kohaku and Keisuke would stand in silent shock also covered in the sweet substance, Tortuga, their pet **boa constrictor**, slithering lazily around Kohaku's arm as if nothing happened.

An uncomfortable calm filled the room as the event sank in. The dining room was a mess. Tamaki was a mess. More importantly, Haruhi was a mess. Slowly, she licked her chocolate covered lips. Well, she got to taste dessert after all.

Haruhi's eyes fell on the three-year-olds who were deathly still. The shock had been replaced with fear. Before she could react to their looks, the brunette noticed the snake in the older twin's arms. She suddenly chuckled before breaking out into all out laughter.

As quickly as she had fallen, Rebekah stood up looking at the laughing lawyer. "Oh my gosh. I'm so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so sorry!" She said in full plea. "I didn't mean to fall. I was just surprised by the boys and Tortuga. I just tripped back. I'm so sorry. I'm such a clutz!"

"Haruhi…" The name echoed from the rest of the members in the room. Kaoru finally got up from his seat and walked quickly to Haruhi and Rebekah's side.

"It's all right. Rebekah, get some towels before this pudding cakes on them." The Hitachiin ordered. "Haruhi, Tamaki are you ok?"

"It's a snake! Tortuga is a snake?" Haruhi cried through her laughter. "You told me Tortuga means turtle, Tamaki-Sempai. Hahaha, look at your face."

The blonde blinked through his chocolate covered face and he broke into an embarrassed grin. "Well, I was trying to tell you, but I didn't get the chance. Your face is covered too, Haruhi." With this, the Suou also broke into a fit of laughter.

The grave atmosphere of the room swiftly dissipated with the coming of laughter. Before the laughter could die, Honey came forward and declared, "Look, Haru-chan and Tama-chan are like chocolate covered bunnies!" This just refueled the giggles and chuckles.

The only person who wasn't laughing was Kaoru. Though the Hitachiin's mood went unnoticed by most of the people in the room, he stood silently by himself. With a quick look in his sons' direction he summoned them to him. The brothers gave each other knowing looks and walked towards their father fearfully. Kaoru held his hand out simply, "Tortuga por favor. Sabeis que no puedeis llevar Tortuga a la cena." His voice came out evenly.

Abruptly a wave of protests overcame the humor in the room as the pair began to beg for mercy. "Por favor, Papa. No quita Tortuga por favor." Kohaku called quickly, holding his pet snake close to his body as if it was a pet kitten and not a reptile of any kind.

"No hacemos mas. No quita Tortuga por favor." Keisuke added his voice to the pleas.

Kohaku pleaded once more, "Papa, no quita Tortuga."

"Por favor. Somos ninos buenos ahora. Papa." Keisuke accompanied his brother.

Kaoru look down at the two silently. The laughter had died completely now and the group was now staring in the direction of the scene of discipline. Haruhi watched him closely. She had never really pictured either of the Hitachiin twins being strict parents. They had been so mischievous in high school, Haruhi had expected Hikaru and Kaoru to be very lenient. Almost too lenient.

The young father still kept his mouth sealed, his gaze cold and emotionless. His sons came to him, covered in the chocolate. Each pulled at his leg desperately. "Papa lo siento…" Kohaku began.

"…no hago mas." And Keisuke finished.

The identical boys tugged at their father's leg, but Kaoru still would not react. His eyes were still dead of emotion. Haruhi stared in shock. She turned to Tamaki beside her and Kyouya a few feet away, but neither man moved to stop the lack of response from the Hitachiin. Frowning, Haruhi stepped forward, but she was pulled back before she could get far. Spinning around, she glared at Tamaki, who held her left arm firmly. "What are you doing?" She demanded urgently, but in a whisper. "It wasn't their fault. They're kids for goodness sake. They can't help but get excited when dessert comes-"

"Shhh, Haru-chan just watch." Honey appeared by her side to reply. He was smiling and Mori who stood behind nodded in agreement.

"You shouldn't get in front of a disciplining parent. Have patience, you'll see." Kyouya added.

Haruhi stared at each man in utter surprise. She turned to the blonde that held her, "Tamaki-sempai…"

"He's the strongest of all of us in this type of thing isn't he, Kyouya?" The Suou queried gently, speaking to the Ohtori and Fujioka at once. "None of us could be able to teach our children to put aside pleasure for the sake of obedience like Kaoru can. He was telling the truth when he said he wasn't going to spoil those boys."

"Well, we all know how their 'father' was, and Maria's only wish was for Kaoru to raise them modestly. She hated our lifestyles, remember?" Kyouya answered truthfully. "She wouldn't even have the maids clean her own clothes."

Haruhi listened closely and relaxed. This was another action that had been brought about because of the past. Kaoru was being a father that was all.

As the group spoke lowly, Kohaku and Keisuke were still begging. "Papa. Por favor. No quita Tortuga!"

A pair of gold tearful gazes met Kaoru's, who scowled. After what seemed to be five minutes, the boys both in tears now, even if their parent had not uttered a word, Kaoru finally reacted.

"Bastante! No quiero escuchar mas. Tortuga." Kaoru's arm extended and took the snake from the older twin and coiled the creature around his hand. He stopped speaking in Spanish and continued, "Look at you two. Those are new outfits and you promised me that if I allowed you to wear them you wouldn't get them dirty." The man's voice steadily apprehended.

The two backed off and rubbed their wet chocolate-covered faces. They sniffled and muttered uniformly, "Lo sentamos, we're sorry."

Instead of answering, Kaoru looked towards the door of the room, where Rebekah had just entered with towels, a mop, and bucket of soapy water. "Rebekah, I'll take care of the cleaning here. Could you please take these two upstairs and put them in the tub?" He asked.

The German girl came to him quickly and handed her items over. She then scooped the sobbing boys up and took them away leaving the group to stare at the lone figure. Kaoru took a deep breath and sighed. His form boasted that he had been using self-control of some kind. He placed the mop and bucket down, giving Haruhi and Tamaki the towels that were damp. "I apologize greatly for what happened."

The brunette shook her head, "No no. It's fine, Kaoru. They're only children. You could've been a little less cold." Haruhi voiced aside from knowing his motives behind his actions.

The Hitachiin gave her a small smile and scratched his head. "It… can't be helped." He was painfully frank, not even trying to excuse his actions. "As their guardian, I have to make sure those two know that one must deserve and work for what they want. When they make mistakes, they will lose things. When they do something good, then they will gain. Those are the laws of life. I'm sorry again that you had to see that and this had to happen to you."

"It's fine, but I don't think that she will be able to get a room in that state, Kaoru." Kyouya replied before the girl could answer. He glanced at the lawyer and nodded his head.

"Well, I have her things in my car. I can take her home with me and we can both wash up-" Tamaki started.

But Haruhi was swift to interrupt him, "Kaoru, do you mind if I stay the night?"

The red head pulled back in surprise, "What?"

"WHAT!?" The Host King nearly screamed. "Haru-"

Haruhi overcame him again; "You looked pretty stressed having to deal with the twins all the time. I could help these next couple of days until I get a hotel room. I'll be out by Wednesday."

Kaoru was speechless and glanced around uncomfortably. His eyes fell on Tamaki who had rediscovered his pit of sadness in the corner of the room. The twenty-five year old was prostrated in front of a large banner with the words, "Oh woe the day Haruhi no longer desires to be with Daddy." The banner had never been in the dining room before. At the sight, the Hitachiin chuckled awkwardly, "Well…" The man fell silent when the blonde's death glare came his way. With such a look targeted on him, Kaoru feared for the safety of his children. "I don't…"

"Please!" Haruhi placed her hands together and bowed. "Think of it as a more permanent apology for spilling pudding on me and making me miss my hotel room."

She didn't notice how Kaoru stiffened at her blunt words. Guilt overcame the death glare's power on the Hitachiin. "Uh… ok. I guess a couple of nights won't hurt anyone." There was a thud as Tamaki collapsed on the ground in the corner, clearly losing all of the previous maturity he had gained over seven years in five minutes. "Except Tamaki, of course." Kaoru added with a small laugh. Silence followed and the brunette and red head stared at each other for a few moments in finalized silence.

"It's settled then. Haru-chan will stay with Kao-chan, and we go home." Honey piped up happily. He looked to Mori, "Takashi, you might need to take Tama-chan to his car. I don't think he'll be able to on his own."

"Ok." Mori replied and moved to pick up what appeared to be a spiritless husk of Tamaki's body.

"I guess we shall make our leave then." Kyouya finished coolly and readjusted his coat. "Thank you for the dinner, Kaoru."

"Thank you!" Honey added and dove at Haruhi to surround her in his arms. "Bye-bye Haru-chan. I'm so happy you came back to Japan. Next time, you should come to the dojo with Mori and me. You can meet our families too." He released her and came to Mori's side.

The three headed for the door and began to make their leave. Before departing, Kyouya stopped and looked back at the two ex-hosts, muttering, "Now, enjoy each other's company. Of course, don't enjoy it too well."

The provocative statement made the two give the Ohtori a shocked look, but it was Tamaki's message that rang out was clear.

"Don't you dare touch my daughter, you lecherous fiend!" But with that said, the three were gone, Honey returning only to drop off Haruhi's luggage.

After a few minutes of silence, Kaoru calmly picked Haruhi's things up and gave her a polite grin, "Well, I'll take you to your room then."

Haruhi's POV

I wiped the misted bathroom mirror with my forearm and gazed at my pajama-clad body. A couple of hours had passed since the big fiasco in the dining room where Tamaki, the boys, and I had become human desserts. Since then, I had unpacked and taken a nice relaxing bath washing all the chocolate out of my hair, face, and body. As I looked at my reflection, I sighed and shook my wet head, such a waste that the food had been dropped. I picked up my toothbrush and began to clean my teeth.

Kyouya had seemed so insistent on me staying over at Kaoru's for some reason. It had never occurred to me that, when Kyouya and the others had made me believe that I was the only one left to help our friend, I had to stay at his house too. The home was spacious and yet welcoming all at once, but I didn't think that I could learn very much living under one roof with the Hitachiin. I rolled my eyes and spat the minty froth in my mouth. These next two days were going to be interesting.

I rinsed my mouth and yawned. Jetlag was never much of a problem with me, but I was still exhausted due to the days of traveling from one continent to another. Stretching, I dried my face and left the huge guest bathroom and its wonderfully relaxing Jacuzzi tub. I entered into the guest bedroom and observed my surroundings. Before I had washed up, I had feared touching anything and everything in any case I got something dirty. Now that I was clean, I could really take in the guest bedroom that was relatively the size of the old apartment I lived in with my father. The walls were a gentle green hue and the bed was covered in dark green and white sheets. It was king sized too. Slowly, I jumped onto the bed and gasped as my body was nearly enveloped by the softness of the bed. It felt amazing, but unusual to my tired body. The bed I had had in America had been firm and stiff, the guest bedroom's bed was the exact opposite. My eyes moved around the rest in the room. Taking in the decent sized plasma television on one wall of the room and looking at the deep oak cabinets and dressers. I snuggled deeper into the bed and thought for a moment. "How can you not spoil your kids when you're living in a house like this?" I asked myself, thinking of what Tamaki and Kyouya had said when they had stopped me from interrupting Kaoru and the boys.

I rolled over in bed and looked at the green ceiling. This was the second green room in the house. Whoever had painted the house had liked the color green a little too much. Silently, I closed my eyes and got comfortable, but within seconds I heard two high-pitched giggles coming from outside my room. Getting onto my stomach, I slipped off the bed and headed for the door from my room into the second floor main hallway. I opened the entryway an inch and gazed out through the crack in the door, finding a very humorous scene taking place.

It seemed that Kaoru had forgiven his sons enough to be playing with them again, but I hadn't seen their pet snake anywhere either. When I looked out my door, I found Kohaku and Keisuke running through the halls butt-naked. Their hair was wet so it was apparent that the two had just finished bathing. I gazed passed them and noticed Kaoru laughing as he half ran half stumbled after the nude twins. The man's sleeves were rolled up and the front of his shirt was wet, but he didn't seem to mind. "Haku, Kei, stop running around, will you?" The young father called out through his laughter. When Kaoru missed grabbing hold of his wet slippery naked sons, he straightened and pretended to breathe hard. "Come now…I can't catch you two. You're too fast."

Kohaku and Keisuke stopped, giggling adorably. They placed their hands on their hips and swayed their little hips from side to side, teasingly saying, "Papa, Papa, **Daddy, Daddy**, Otou-san, Otou-san… you can't catch us!" I couldn't help but smile at how well they could do it at the same time.

Kaoru chuckled and placed his hands on his hips as well but didn't sway them, he answered, "Well, I'm going to keep trying until I do! Come here, you two are soaking wet you'll get sick. You don't want to be sick on your birthday."

"We won't…"

"…get sick."

"We eat…"

"…our vegetables!" The two sang out, abruptly squealing in delight as Kaoru came rushing at them.

I watched the three run around the hallway for a minute or two more, and finally Kaoru had stopped to catch his breath as he laughed and ran all at once. I was grinning at the sight of the little family and couldn't pull my eyes away from my close friend who had changed and sacrificed so much. For a moment, I remembered Hikaru and Maria. Kaoru wasn't their real father, yet he was the Hitachiin raising the two. Simply put, Kohaku and Keisuke would have been orphans if it were not for Kaoru. Now, the only member missing from this makeshift family was a mother.

After watching the three, I couldn't stifle the yawn came to my form out of nowhere. At the sound all the Hitachiins in the hallway stopped and turned in my direction. The twins came to a sudden stop and looked at me. In an instant, the two realized their lack of clothing and yelped. "Ahh!" Before I could say anything, they ran into a nearby room that appeared to be their bedroom. Kaoru remained in his place and I slipped out into the corridor.

"Is there a problem with your room Haruhi?" Kaoru queried kindly. A second of thought passed and his eyes grew a few sizes, "Were we too loud? I'm really quite sorry. I'll make sure to keep Haku and Kei quei-"

I didn't realize my words until they came spilling from my mouth, "You love them very much, don't you? No matter if they are yours or not."

His golden gaze remained on me for a few moments, before Kaoru placed his hands in his pockets. His voice was uncharacteristically low, as if he was keeping a secret, "Yes… yes I do… Hika-My brother may be biologically their father, but I am…" Kaoru stopped and reached up to rub the back of his neck. "I love them more than anything and will protect them with my life… like a guardian should."

I noted how he kept referring himself as a 'guardian', not as a father, parent, or uncle. It made me feel uneasy. He loved Kohaku and Keisuke and they loved him just as much, but he was forcing himself to remain distant. He took the responsibility of raising them. Didn't that mean he accepted the burdens of parenthood, and the blessings? "Only a guardian?" I was already speaking my mind. "Aren't you more than that?"

Kaoru could only nod, "To them, yes. To them, I am **Daddy**, Papa, Otou-san. To me, they are-"

"Otou-san it's sleeping time!" The sound of two small voices stopped the man from continuing.

His response was loud and audible, no longer the faint whisper he had previously been using. "I'm coming!"

"Tell us a bedtime story!"

"I will!" The red head paused, "Say good night to Haruhi Oba-chan."

"Night, Haruhi Oji-chan!" I could hear Kohaku's voice loud and clear.

"Kohaku, would you like to repeat that?" Kaoru suddenly growled.

There was a faint chuckle, "-chan."

"Kohaku, you called Haruhi Oba-chan, Oji-chan." Keisuke giggled.

"Oops." Came his brother's reaction.

Their father rolled his eyes and added, "Kei, I didn't hear you."

"Buenas Noches!" The younger twin squeaked.

I smiled gently; just hearing how the two were so obedient to the man they thought was their real dad, filled me with a strange bittersweet emotion. "They love you so much. They think of you as their father, Kaoru." I mumbled.

It was then that I realized that Kaoru's hands had been pulled out of his pockets and were balled up in tight fists. He was looking off into the distance and though I tried to open my mouth to continue, I heard him mutter something barely audible, "Well… that's more than enough. I don't deserve any more."

"What did you say?" I stepped forward, but Kaoru was entering the twins' bedroom. I followed him to the doorway, where I found the three-year-old boys huddled in the center of a huge king-sized bed. From my position, I observed Kaoru climb into the bed after removing his wet shirt. He laid on his side and wrapped his arms around the small children in a tight embrace. He completely ignored my presence.

"What kind of story do you want tonight?" He asked calmly.

Kohaku spoke, "It's Keisuke's turn to pick the story, Papa."

Keisuke nodded. He was the twin deeper in Kaoru's arms and he snuggled against the heat of the Hitachiin's chest. "I want a story about Oka-san."

"Oka-san. I want a story about her too." Kohaku chirped in.

There several seconds of silence as Kaoru thought about this. Within these moments, I realized he wasn't going to say anything if I was around so I backed off and left for my room.

And just as I turned to leave, I heard him begin, "You're mother loved you two like no other. She still loves you even if she is in heaven. She will always love you…"

I returned to my room and got into bed quietly. I had to rethink my strategy now. My usual blunt say-what-I-think attitude wasn't going to get Kaoru talking. The younger twin was smart enough to know how to interpret my blunt words and was actually becoming more defensive the more I asked him questions. I sighed, two nights weren't going to be enough to get into his brain and find a way to get Kaoru on the right track again. Rubbing my eyes, I fell back into the soft pillows and before long, I blacked out.

**********

A loud ringing woke me up barely a few hours later. I sat up in bed, groggy and slightly disoriented. For a second, I didn't recognize my surroundings, but at the next ring I recalled Kaoru, pudding, and staying over. Rubbing my eyes, I yawned and waited. Wasn't anyone going to pick that phone up? There was an additional ring and I groaned. I hated phones.

I stood up quickly and exited my room into the dark unlit hallway. Following my ears instead of my eyes. I headed in the direction of the ringing, entering a door I didn't recognize, but was too sleepy to care. I felt around and came upon a desk in the darkness. The ringing was coming from it and I rapidly grabbed the phone off its cradle and carried it to my ear. Where the heck was Kaoru?

"…Hello?" I greeted with a suppressed yawn. At the moment, I didn't care if I sounded rude or not. Who would call so damn early in the morning?

"Bonjour, may I speak to Kaoru Hitachiin please?" A slightly accented voice of a young man came over the receiver. I collapsed into the office chair, and swiveled it around, facing the open door and seeing across the corridor into the boys' bedroom. I saw Kaoru's back. He had fallen asleep beside his sons. He hadn't even changed out of his day clothes.

I yawned openly this time and asked, "Who's this?"

There was a moment of silence as if the man had realized that I wasn't someone he had heard on the phone before. "May I ask, who is this?"

If I had been awake, I would've replied with the basic, 'I asked you first,' line, but being I was semi-conscious, I answered straight away. "Fujioka, Haruhi. I'm a friend of Kaoru's staying the night." Without being aware of it, I added, "Do you not know what time it is? Kaoru's sleeping like a log. I woke up because of this loud phone. Who do you think you are?"

All I got was silence as a reply, and my drowsy brain came to the conclusion that the man had hung up due to my bluntness, which was worse when I was grouchy. I pulled the phone from ear to return it to its base.

"Haruhi!" The man spoke loudly enough through the receiver that I brought the phone back to my ear before I had hung up.

With my right hand I rubbed my eyes and hissed, "So… who is this?"

There was a pause, but finally the man answered, "Haruhi, it's me, Hikaru."

* * *

CLIFFHANGER!! Oooooh what'll happen?

Well, there you have it. Chapter 4 of It Takes Two to Play the Game. I'm SOOOOOOOO sorry for not updating for a few months. I had so much school work to do, but with summer finally here, I'll try to pump in a new chapter every month or so. Please forgive me, and stay strong and dedicated! I know I will try hard to even if I have work to do!

**TO REVIEW!!!** Click the link below and leave a comment!! PLEASE!!

Thanks for reading!

**Next Time:** Hikaru!? How did he get into any of this? Haruhi realizes that this whole time, Kaoru has interacted with his twin brother without the twins or Hikaru knowing of each other's existence. But strangely something is very different and very wrong. What happened to the brotherly love act? How can one conversation in the middle of the night with his older twin stress the young father so much? What can Haruhi do, when the Hitachiin's are so disconnected?

What can she do, when Kaoru disappears the day before Kohaku and Keisuke's fourth birthday.

…Stay tuned…


	6. What Was Lost in this Game

**WARNING: EXTREMELY LONG CHAPTER. THE LONGEST SO FAR! ENJOY IT WELL MY FRIENDS!**

Hey everyone; it's Yuzume again. Sorry about the wait, but here it is. Chapter five of It Takes Two. In truth this is the second time I'm writing this chapter because my lousy four year old computer that I decided to buy off e-bay abruptly died on me the morning I was about to upload the latest chapter. Some luck, huh? Well, I took about a week off to reorganize my thoughts and climb out of the abyss of depression I had fallen into to due to losing about 20 or so pages of fanfiction. If you're a writer like me, rewriting something is as painful as picking up the pieces of a 350 piece puzzle that you had completed, but accidentally dropped on the way to placing it in its frame.

Ok, here goes nothing, second times the charm, Here is Chapter Five.

**Last Time:** Haruhi has returned to her lovely group of ex-hosts a little wiser and older than before. Due to a sequence of events such as a boa constrictor named Turtle and a bowl flying chocolate pudding she finds herself in the perfect position to help the Hitachiin twin, who is in a complicated predicament. By luck, or faithful coincidence, living under one roof with Kaoru and the new Hitachiin brothers brings not only an opportunity to see how the young man's mind works, but also, the chance to see how Kaoru reacts when his brother reenters the picture.

Disclaimer: I do not and have never owned OHSHC. I also don't own Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens or Tell Tale Heart by Edgar Allen Poe! I wish I did, but then I wouldn't be here if that was the case.

Title: It Takes Two to Play the Game

Author: Yuzume Mikien (Whoo I'm back)

Pairings: TamakixHaruhi, hinted HikaruxHaruhi, HikaruxOC, KaoruxOC, MorixOC, HoneyxOC, maybe even KaoruxHaruhi if you squint. Oooh where's Kyouya… poor bachelor.

Rating: Pg-13 to M, just to be safe.

Warnings: Language, and suggestive themes, but for now, keeping the content at a safe PG-13.

Genre: Drama, Anguish

**PLEASE REVIEW** I love reviews and what you guys think. If you have any ideas for the storyline I'm always open for more. Oh… please don't flame. Constructively criticize, but don't flame.

**NOTE:** I just wanted to thank **Byaku-yue** for the AMAZING fanart and **Tasia'sENDLESSDreams.** For giving me some great support and for being a muse of sorts. I also wanted to thank everyone who has been reviewing. Without you I don't think I would have had the mental capacity to be rewriting this chapter right now. Oh, yeah, I'm sorry about my bad foreign language skills.

**BIG BIG BIG NOTE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!: **I just wanted everyone to know that I DON'T read the manga. I don't have the budget for it or the time to read it online. I have the anime, which I know very well is only the tip of the Ouran ice burg. Over these passed few weeks, I did stumble upon Chapters 50-53 and let's just say, I want everyone to ignore those chapters because what Bisco Hatori did in three chapters I am expanding it by adding seven years. Haha, it scares me how close I characterized Kaoru. I'm sorry guys for any further discrepancies with my fic and the manga, but being I haven't read much of it, other than Chapters 50,51,52,53, and 63, the fic may travel down a path that is different from the real manga. I characterize characters to the best of my ability, but it hurts me to think I'm writing, ignorant to the main storyline. I'm sorry everyone, but I guess with this fic, we'll have to disregard everything that did not happen in the anime but happened in the manga.

Ok, let's begin.

* * *

Chapter Five: What Was Lost in This Game

**Kaoru POV**

A long time ago, I chose to support my brother in every way, shape, or form. Whether it was by keeping silent when he spoke highly of Haruhi, or by taking the blame for impregnating Maria, I knew from the start I had made the decision before thinking about myself. I remember a time many years ago, we were all still in high school then, when Haruhi would become irritable with Hikaru and I, complaining and apprehending us for being self-centered- for wanting more than anyone could give. In truth, I don't think Haruhi could see passed that part of our personalities. Yes, she could tell the two of us apart, could explain that in some way Hikaru and I were different, and even point out a trait in Hikaru that I lacked, but she could only see what our background brought out in us through the way we spoke and acted. She was still oblivious to who we were inside.

We were brothers, we were friends, and for those who wanted to believe, we were even lovers. Only seven years have passed since those days, but to me, it feels like decades… even eternity.

I dream about the old days, about the past that I had both enjoyed and dreaded at times. I dream about the years that passed so quickly by. The first time Hikaru and I had seen Haruhi, the moment she joined the host club, the time we realized she was a girl, and then the countless number of instants that came and went as we reached that faithful day of our high school graduation. There are times when I wonder what I had ever done wrong. If I could have avoided this or said that. If I should've pushed Hikaru harder, even to the point of hurting him. The dreams bring nothing but regrets and yet whatever I do to cease those doubts, I only think of the days after graduation and the seven years that followed, knowing full well that I deserve each regret that comes my way.

For some reason, I can't come to blame her- to blame Haruhi for my current situation. I recall a time when Kyouya brought up the thought. He told me if she hadn't left, Hikaru would not have been so foolish, but whatever he reasoned out, I didn't bring myself to say anything bad or to curse my friend. He's warned me many times that if I didn't blame someone for my life, I would break down from the guilt that I had kept hidden inside and had not given to those around me. Strangely, no matter how many warnings, I can't agree with his take on life. For Kyouya, life was always predetermined by others, so he was never to blame. He would plan things so life would run his way, but in the end, he always had that defense, where he could step back and return to the background reasoning that it was Tamaki who had been insistent on making this decision or it was due to his older brothers he had to act a certain way. I can easily count the very few times he did take the blame for his actions and with that in mind, I can't agree even if he is the Uncle of Hikaru's children. No matter how many times you blame a person, the problem still won't go away.

I guess if I cannot blame, I wish.

For a long time, I used to wish that Haruhi would see what was happening around her. I used to wish for a very long time that she would realize that my brother wasn't just obnoxiously self-centered; he was obnoxiously love-struck. I would wish that she would see how much I was pushing him towards her… and away from me. And the whole time I did this, I didn't blame her. I never did and never have.

After Hikaru got married, the dreams really started to come. There hasn't been a night since then where I haven't dreamed.

I remember that day; I dream about that day. How could I forget the moment I knew for certain that I had truly pushed my brother to the place he belonged. Haruhi had been long gone, yet I continued to push him to the correct position in our family so he could know nothing but happiness, especially after what I had done to him after his first love left for the United States.

And yet, even when the news had been spread and I had been told he would live happily with Sachiko, the emotion that filled me had not been relief or ease, it had been regret and guilt.

I still don't know to this day if I would have gone to Hikaru's wedding if I had still been living in Japan and had been given the permission to attend. Who knows if I had been invited? All I do know is that I had had a number of things on my mind at that time. Maria was nearly seven months pregnant, it was the beginning of winter, and I was still looking for a permanent job to support a family of three in a country that was not my own.

I'm still indebted to Tamaki for giving us the rights to the small private cottage in a small rural French town, he and his mother used to stay in during the summer, when they could escape the second estate. His mother had long disappeared, and even though the home resurrected a number of different memories for the man I used to call Feudal Lord, he still bought us the plane tickets to his home country, still moved the few belongings Maria and I had possessed, and still came to visit every month, until the boys were born, to check up on Maria and (though I never did admit it at the time) myself.

He had arrived at our doorstep that day in December in high spirits speaking in nothing but French. Not even my dreams will leave that part of my memory out.

"Good Morning, Kaoru, Maria. How are the lovely couple doing!?" No matter what events had come and gone, he still acted oblivious. All I could do was fidget uncomfortably when the word couple exited his mouth. Maria could only smile at the blonde's energy, for though I had taught her some French to get by; she still could not comprehend a native speaker like Tamaki. That day, the Feudal Lord had entered his home in joy and excitement, quickly greeting Maria with a kiss on the cheek and complimenting her like only a true host could, "Ah, Maria each time I see you, you become more beautiful. Today, you are glowing. Oh and look, the little one is getting so big. I bet you two can't wait for her to arrive. Promise you'll call me the when the baby comes and I'll jump on the first flight over!"

After the drama had died down and Tamaki had situated us in his childhood home, he had been insistent that the baby would be a girl. I never did point out his lack of clairvoyance when a set of twin boys arrived in the place of the niece he desired. When he arrived that day, I stared at him quietly as he finished speaking to Maria in a mix of Japanese and French before he turned to me. There was a huge grin lighting his features. "Kaoru! I couldn't wait to come visit you two. It's been quite busy in Tokyo. Grandmother is being difficult again and Kyouya's too busy to come by to merely spend some casual time with me any more. To tell you the truth, visiting you every month is the highlight of my life!" I remember smiling, but not genuinely. Being in the situation I was in, I had lost much of my sense of humor.

"Well, I'm very happy that you feel that way, Tamaki." I replied simply.

I watched Maria step forward, "Tamaki-sama, please come in. I bet you're freezing." She invited the host king in politely, as in his excitement he had greeted us, but had remained standing in the open entryway. Icy wind and bits of snow were already entering our small home. The blonde came in swiftly, nearly bouncing passed us. Before either Maria or I could speak, Tamaki was already in mid-monologue.

"Speaking about Kyouya, I haven't seen many of our old group much anymore. I mean I don't see Mori or Honey… not even your brother. All I see are you and Kyouya. Oh- but I did get to see everyone last week at the wedding. Lots of family and guests from all over were there. You know, Renge, Nekozawa, and even Basanova were there as well. Here, I have pictures!" With these words, he pulled out a pack of developed photos.

For a moment, Maria and I gave each other a glance before returning our gazes on Tamaki, who was a little too hyper at the time. I had been to Mori's wedding and Honey's wedding. I had come to the opening of Kyouya's branched off corporation and to Tamaki's twenty-first birthday. Hearing wedding for the third time, my stomach was already uncomfortably churning

"Um, Tamaki-sama would you like something to drink? Tea? Milk?" Knowing just how to slow the pace of the moment, Maria was already taking Tamaki by the arm and leading him to the living room. She knew exactly what had been running through my head as he had gone on about pictures and weddings. She knew my thoughts before I could say them or make them known and maybe that's what really made me love her. "You can show us the pictures over something warm. Have you had breakfast yet? I could make you something."

Maria never acted with the modesty or humility that the Japanese and high class wealthy girls had had in high school. She had been raised on Western American Customs so the way she spoke and acted seemed rough and extremely casual to the point you couldn't help, but feel comfortable around her. Maria had the bluntness of Haruhi, but was, in many ways, very different from the girl Tamaki and Hikaru had loved. If Maria was still alive, all I know is that she and Haruhi would have made a very interesting pair; a pair that would could have trampled over everything Tamaki, Hikaru, and I could have ever made up.

I don't know if Tamaki was really that clueless when Maria brought him away from me, or maybe he was still trying to act as if the spell he had cast was still in effect and we were all in the illusion of carriage. Nevertheless, Maria's American casualness and Tamaki's naïve joy coexisted hand in hand, and I was left to my thoughts; the same thoughts that plague me to this day.

When I finally came to join them, Maria and Tamaki were having a simple conversation over cups of hot tea and coffee, while Tamaki cooed over Maria's stomach. I sat beside Maria and effortlessly acted as if nothing was bugging me.

Tamaki clapped his hands and picked up a mug of what appeared to be the instant coffee we had in the house. He took a sip and sighed, "Kaoru, I see you've truly converted to drinking commoner's coffee. Drinking this brings back memories. Grandmother doesn't enjoy it when I drink commoner's coffee." Tamaki laughed gently and set his cup down. Years after the end of the original host club had not brought the end of commoner's coffee days. Of course, after living modestly in France, pre-ground coffee had become normal for me.

Maria had laid out only two cups, one with coffee for our guest and another with tea for herself. I didn't mind the missing cup. After living with her for a little over five months, we had grown accustomed to drinking from the same glass or not drinking at all. In truth, I had fallen several social classes from high to low. We could barely get by on the odd jobs I would find each day and being that Tamaki had nearly been disowned himself, I denied any further assistance from the blonde. We had enough dishes to survive, but barely enough food. I was able to keep us from starving, especially important with Maria eating for two (actually three), but at times, I found myself learning to sacrifice in ways I had never known were possible. Not drinking the tea that Maria loved so much had been one of the sacrifices I had learned to make.

"So, you had pictures to show us?" Maria inquired, taking a drink from her cup and touching her abdomen. I sat placidly beside her, my arm snaking around her shoulders out of habit. At that time, I did so as to protect her, nowadays I know I had held on to her due to many more reasons as well.

"Yes, pictures!!" Tamaki declared and revealed the photos once more. "They had a professional photographer there, but I brought my commoner's camera with me too so there's a mix." Without further ado, he scattered the pictures over the coffee table that separated his couch from ours.

I didn't turn to look at them and stared at him instead. "What are they of?"

His violet eyes met mine and I could see the emotions hidden behind his gaze. He understood my indifference, but still attempted to remain cheerful about the news he was about to report. In reaction, the blonde only chuckled, "Oh you know, the wedding."

"Whose?" I remember sounding so harsh, so cold, as if I hated my life, my position and was showing an attitude like some self-centered idiot. I wasn't that selfish. I wasn't the selfish twin, but for some reason my words were getting colder- crueler. "I'm not an idiot. If you're going to continue to use those general terms with me you can just go home." My eyes would not travel to the table, not because I was being an asshole about it, but because I feared looking at the happy host club all together and how I would react.

"Kaoru." Maria's voice was steady making me glance in her direction. Her black eyes were demanding me to stop what I was doing. She knew I did not normally act in such a way, yet whenever Hikaru was brought up I couldn't help but become rude and careless. "Don't be like that."

"Like what? I'm not doing anything." My heart were hardening, both Maria and Tamaki could see this. But I knew what they were thinking. Watching me, they thought I had come to despise my brother the same way Kyouya despised his position as the youngest son. They believed that I was trying to prove myself to those around me with my harsh words and hateful statements, but could they not see that I wasn't trying to prove anything?

I just wanted to stop the guilt. I broke my brother's heart and to repent, I took his mistake as my own. I had shoved him forward, taught him a lesson about relationships, taught him to stop sleeping with every woman he met. I had done so many things, yet the guilt never left. Instead it got worse. I took Maria, his mistake, so that I could right a wrong, but in doing so I was saying I loved a woman I did not know for my own selfish gains. Then I tried to let go of that guilt caused by my betrayal and selfishness by falling in love with Maria, but it only intensified all the regret. Whatever I did made my predicament worse. I tried to fix one problem, but got ten more in return. When I began to fall in love with the woman my brother slept with, I kept asking myself: "Are you doing this out of pity? Should you not be feeling sorry for hurting your brother, for stooping so low as to fix his heart by caring for the mother of his children? Why are you glad to be with her? Are you supposed to be falling in love with her, when it is only out of necessity both of you are together? She will never be yours and yet you can feel happy. Do you already deserve to be free of the regret that plagues you?"

So many questions and yet no answers. My confusion -my indecision- was what truly dipped my words in bitterness. I hated myself for doing everything and yet solving nothing. Now, I was looking at the pictures of my brother's wedding; the wedding I had not attended. I was supposed to be his best man; he had had it all planned out. But I destroyed one of his dreams so as to place him on the path to another. I pushed my brother forward so he would not feel the pain of loss, but doing so, I then had to pick up the mess he left behind as he rushed forward spending his youth on young women. I took Maria in so that he could keep moving on, but in result, I lost my own status and I caused Hikaru further pain. I made him invincible, but in the end, I caused him to lose the only person who understood and loved him. Trying to save him from the agony of our mistakes, he lost me, his dear twin brother. I tried to save him one way and ended up killing him another, and now I was falling in love with a girl I did not deserve.

To this day, I'm still looking for those answers I was seeking nearly five years ago. I was much colder back then because I had cornered myself with a countless numbers of problems to fix and whenever I heard my brother's name I cursed myself for my carelessness. Even when the problem had only been Haruhi, I had already questioned what I would do if Hikaru had started moving forward on his own. And finally, when he did move, I found myself still asking the same question while looking at the mess I had caused.

So you see, as Tamaki tried with great difficulty to tell me about my brother's wedding without angering me, I was becoming even more irritable, not because I regretted my situation, but because after all I had done, nothing had changed and my brother was still in pain.

That day Tamaki told me about the wedding, I realized I had taken away Hikaru's happiness, his twin brother, and replaced it with a new one, a good faultless life with a perfect wife that both mother and father had accepted. My brain registered the blonde's slow hesitant explanation, but my body no longer reacted. For a good hour, I only stared, my gaze forced to look at the blessings I had given my brother. I tried to imagine what it would have been like to be by his side and to see him happy again, but guilt was always quick to take its place in my mind for I knew full well that it was my fault that the bond was broken and he could never truly be happy.

I don't remember how long I looked at the photos scattered over the coffee table. I didn't pick any of the pictures up; I kept my distance as if I didn't recognize any of the pictures before me. Even after Tamaki had run out of things to say and stories to tell, I continued to stare, nearly forgetting Maria by my side. No one interrupted me until I realized that the room had become deathly quiet. When I finally brought myself to blink and break my gaze, I felt horrible. I sensed Maria and Tamaki's eyes on me and yet I did not give them any sign as to what I was feeling.

Before I knew what I was doing, I had picked up Maria's half-cup of tea and was chugging the lasts of it down. She watched me the entire time filled with her own regret, as I nearly slammed the cup back down and stood up. With this, I found myself taking hold of one of the many pictures that littered the table. Taking a very long look at the image, I didn't notice my mouth twisting into a grin or the blood rushing to my face. And as quickly as I had picked the photo up, I unceremoniously dropped it and spoke. The cheerful voice that escaped, still scares me to this day, "Well, make sure to tell them 'Congratulations to the newlyweds' for me then, will you Tamaki?"

I didn't let the blonde answer. Without another word, I just left. I left the room and didn't even say good-bye.

Back then, I was supposedly easy to read… like Hikaru. It had been clear I was upset, but for a whole different reason from what Maria and Tamaki had believed. Who could blame them? The only image I had concentrated my entire attention on was the professional photo of the bride, the groom, and his immediate family, so it was easy for them to predict the thoughts that entered my mind.

I don't remember what I had done after leaving the conversation. I had stumbled off without being aware of it, my mind too preoccupied by my words, by the image of Hikaru, Sachiko, my mother, and my father, and by the mistakes I somehow couldn't fix no matter how hard I tried.

Some time before she died, Maria told me about the moment she found me. She explained that it had been the first (and would be the only time) she had ever seen me cry, though I must have been too mentally instable at the time to remember. She had found me alone, in some forgotten corner of the house, positioned with my face in my hands, my elbows on my knees, collapsed on the ground, crying and moaning. For some reason, the more I try to remember that day the harder it is to recall anything that had happened. For some reason, I can't remember the only breakdown I've had in front of Maria within these last seven years.

Nevertheless, I had been lamenting over something. According to Maria, I had been moaning one thing and one thing only. "It's not complete, it's not complete."

It wasn't until after Maria passed away that I realized what I had been moaning about that day.

Who would have guessed that I had been weeping over the photo and the fact that I wasn't in it…

Nearly five years ago, I had to stay strong for the both of us, Maria and I. I had started off sacrificing everything to take away my brother's pain, but in the end I found myself replacing it with further misfortune. In the end, I had to suck up the agony and strife that came with each of my actions.

Long ago, I tried so hard to stop the tears and show how strong I could be so I could survive without my brother, helping him and hurting him at the same time.

These days, I'm too tired to try to hide what I feel, but too exhausted to cry. I no longer desire strength to live without Hikaru; I only want peace so we can coexist again.

Sadly, how can there be peace, when the guilt and regret still won't go away?

Five years later, not much has changed. The bond is still broken and the guilt is still there, but at least my brother is currently happy even if I had to hurt him in the process.

Now, I have other problems to deal with, though the difficulties of the past are still apparent in the back of my mind. Maria is dead, the boys are motherless, and after five years of marriage Hikaru is still childless as well.

Kohaku and Keisuke, you two were your mother's pride and joy. You two are my most cherished blessings. I may not be your father, but I still love you like my own.

I just wish your father and his wife had an heir already. Because with the guilt I have now, when your grandfather finally loses his patience with that brother of mine, I know I won't have the strength to hold on to the blessings that don't belong to me.

*********

My eyes were open before I was fully conscious. The room was dark and as my eyes adjusted to the dim light of the crescent moon outside Kohaku's window, I slowly became aware of my surroundings. My body felt stiff and when I moved my right arm I found it dead of life; the tingling feeling I received when I moved my fingers proved that my appendage was asleep. I blinked, looking at the twin boys that were lying quietly beside me. Keisuke was sleeping on the bend of my right arm, which explained the lack of circulation. Kohaku was nearby, but taking his sleeping habits from his father, he had somehow found a way to turn himself upside down, his head parallel to his brother's feet.

I hadn't expected to fall asleep in Kohaku's room. The last thing I remember, I had been telling the boys about their mother, which had led me to think about the many months I had spent with her, and in result maybe that's what brought me to think of the day I had found out about Hikaru's wedding. Whatever the case might have been, I had drifted off to sleep, dreaming the same dreams that seemed to plague me each night.

My right arm was tingling painfully and when I tried to move, it shot a small jolt of discomfort up to my shoulder. If it hadn't been for Keisuke's sleeping position, I might have never woken up with such an ache. I glanced around still trying to regain consciousness and finally lifted Keisuke's head before sliding my sleeping arm free. I sat up and yawned; it was still very late, maybe two or three in the morning. Keisuke turned in his sleep, but did not wake up. I couldn't help but sigh in relief, as the shyer younger twin was difficult to put back to sleep even at three years of age. I tried to wake up all the muscles in my body, but it was evident that my body was exhausted from the boys and having to take a walk down memory lane just to bring Haruhi up to speed on the seven year's events. I hadn't been so specific to tell her about what had happened when I had found out about Hikaru's wedding or anything, but at least she was aware that the boys were not mine.

Inching off the bed, I got to my feet and lifted my damp shirt off the floor beside the bed. I stretched it out before me and clicked my tongue tiredly as I found that on the floor a damp blob of wet carpet had remained in its place. I should have changed into something dry before going to tell the boys their bedtime story. Shaking my head, I threw the shirt onto my shoulder and shivered, the cold cloth hitting skin. My brain just wouldn't wake up. Before I knew it, I was sitting on Kohaku's bed ready to doze off again. A few more minutes came and went, and I rubbed my eyes, trying to keep them open. All I had to do was stumble next door to my bedroom, but my legs were not listening.

Once more, I forced myself off the bed and moved around the king sized mattress to its opposite side. I gave my body some activity and crawled unto the mattress. I took hold of Kohaku and lifted him up, twisting him around and placing him in the right direction of sleep by his brother. Keisuke snuggled closer to the new source of warmth, while I enveloped the two in their comforter. With this, my mind was finally working and I slipped off the bed and exited the room.

Outside in the corridor, Haruhi's voice caught me off guard.

"H-Hikaru? Is that really you?" I stopped moving, hearing her words with a mix of shock and dread. What the heck was going on?

I turned in the direction of her voice and found it coming from my upstairs office, across the hallway. I was wide awake now, the sound of my brother's name still having the same affect on me as it did five years prior. I moved towards my office listening.

"Well, it-it's nice to hear you again too." Haruhi spoke gently. Her words were heavy from sleep as well. "What a surprise, huh?"

By instinct, I kept silent even when I had arrived at the entryway of my office. Haruhi had her back towards the door so she could not see me.

"Yeah, sorry about snapping like that. I flew into Tokyo just this morning… yeah I was more exhausted than I thought… oh it's fine, you don't need to apologize. I'm just a light sleeper."

I felt the frown on my face as I waited. What was Hikaru doing calling at this time of the year? It was only February; there was no need to be calling me right after a semester report.

Our bond was broken, yes. We were not as close as we used to be, yes, but due to Kyouya and Mori (yes, Mori), and their incredibly persuasive negotiating skills, my father and brother had returned to me the few branches of my family's company situated in Japan, the United States, Australia, and a number of other places in East Asia a few months after the boys had been born. The only catch was that the branches's stocks had to be bought and shared between the Ohtori and Hitachiin families, so even if I was the head of all the fashion departments on the western hemisphere, Kyouya still had the direct power. What's more the Hitachiin branches would really be under the Ohtori name so in some ways, though he had given me the branches he brought off my family, I still had to report to him and my father. Kyouya wasn't the problem, it was the semester reports to my father that made my life more difficult than needed.

In truth, I was still the disowned twin of the Hitachiin family, who only regained his old assets because he had friends in high places. Knowing this, my father did not make anything in my life any simpler. Every six months, I had to turn in a report covering every product, every profit, and every action taken in all the branches I 'owned'. It was difficult work especially because I was raising the twins, while sending my maid to high school. Though I had never told Hikaru that I was a single parent (in truth, the twins and my brother did not even know the other existed), my father knew my situation and yet never did lighten the workload. Where my brother was in charge of Hitachiin Fashion dynasty against the most competitive European companies of the world, I was trying to be a businessman to a smaller group of branches over a larger area. Where my brother could send the new season's fashion line on train or truck all over Europe on the equal currency of the Euro, or on the alternative currency of the Pound, I had to struggle connecting the businesses I made in the US and Australia with the businesses I had in South Korea and Japan; language, currency, and time zones always getting in the way. I avoided business trips as best I could, so as not to leave the twins, but at times, I found myself leaving for a week to the US, only finding out about the trip three days before my flight. And with all this on my plate, my father still wanted to see the Hitachiin branches compete internationally using advertisements, fashion shows, commercials, semester reports compiled every six months, and random inspections that my father sent Hikaru to do. My father was doing everything he could to make my life difficult… of course I knew perfectly why.

He knew more about this situation than he should have.

My last report had been turned in January, the next wouldn't be due until July, yet why was my brother calling?

"It's about three in the morning… No, he's asleep right now… Yeah, that's a long story… I was planning to stay at a hotel." Haruhi continued with her conversation with Hikaru. The longer she spoke the more my chest tightened with dread. What did my brother want? "We were having dinner at his house. Kyouya-sempai, Tamaki-sempai, Mori-sempai, and Honey-sempai were there. It got late and you know how Tamaki-sempai is, once he found out I needed a place to stay. He spontaneously went off about not allowing his 'daughter' to stay in some indecent hotel or something like that."

Haruhi laughed, her voice was higher now as she was finally fully conscious. I heard my brother's voice, incomprehensible from my distance, and I could tell he was laughing in return. I clenched my fists knowing full well what could be running in my twin's mind. He and Haruhi were acting as if they had last spoken only a few days ago when, in reality, it had been close to seven years. Now, I was wondering what he would tell me. I could already hear him asking me why Haruhi was staying at my home, speaking playfully, but wanting a serious answer. To him, I was still his lonely bachelor brother, so inviting a girl to stay with me was a very provocative action.

I listened on to the one sided conversation, still refraining from making my presence known. I wanted to know what Haruhi had to say about everything she had heard. She knew my twin wasn't aware of my situation, but this was Haruhi, and if she felt keeping him in the dark was wrong, she would say something about it. "Well, it was all do to an accident really. I mean, Kaoru was against the idea because he had felt that staying with him was inappropriate, but then the pudding spilled and Tamaki and I got into quite a mess. In the end, I had to beg him to stay… Pudding? Oh, Kaoru's maid was coming in with the dessert when she noticed Tortuga and dropped the pudding in surprise."

I stiffened at the memorable event that had taken place in my dining room. I didn't like where this talk was going. I finally came into the office and headed in the young woman's direction.

"Who's Tortuga?" Haruhi repeated my brother's question over the phone line. Her voice was quick and it seemed she was reciting her memory of the event and was not fully aware of her words. "Oh, he's Koha-"

My body was moving before my mind could control my movements. Dread had turned into panic, panic into a desperate need to do something, and that need turning into anger towards Haruhi I had never fully intended. Before she could finish Kohaku's name, I slammed my hand on the cradle of the phone, not caring if I had just hung up on my twin in the most rudest of ways. Haruhi was smart enough to stop speaking completely; shock was evident in her face.

Maybe it was the look on my face that made her get up from the seat and stand back, holding the phone out to me without complaint or question. I was glaring at her in a way she had never seen and when I finally spoke, my voice was strong and sounded more like a growl. I was not easily angered, but the thought of having to explain to Hikaru the identity of this 'Kohaku' Haruhi had spoken of had actually caused my blood to boil and my heart to beat hard in my chest. It was the dread that actually enraged me. It was the actually fact that if Hikaru found out about the twins, then eventually the truth would get out, and once the truth was revealed, father would…

" Well… that was some close call. I'm sorry that phone call had to disturb your sleep… Haruhi." My words came out difficultly, as I tried not to snap. I took the phone and couldn't help but sigh in evident frustration as I placed the phone back in its cradle. "Why don't you go back to bed? I can take care of Hikaru."

Her lips parted so that Haruhi could say something, but no words came out. She closed her mouth and bowed her head apologetically, but I couldn't find it in my heart to forgive her just then. All I could do was nod and turn away, taking the phone to my ear and redialing my brother's number long distance.

When the line began to ring, Haruhi gave in and left the room. When she left, I finally released my right hand from the tight fist it had been balled up in. When I looked down at my hand, I saw the red nail marks in my palm. _I'm such a fool._

"Good evening, you've reached Hikaru Hitachiin's office." My brother's secretary was quick to pick up the phone. Though I was normally quite kind to her, the close call minutes before had placed me in a bad mood.

"Connect me to Hikaru now." I ordered flatly into the phone. Before she could ask who I was I added, "It's his brother, the one from Japan."

"Oh…" She paused, feeling uncomfortable at the sound of my voice. "Um, right away sir."

There was a click as the call was connected. I waited, running a hand through my hair and sighing. My body slowly began to relax.

But when I heard Hikaru's voice answer my call, I tensed up all over again. "Hello."

"Hikaru, what did you want?" I questioned him before he could say anything more.

"Kaoru? There you are. I called you three times, but you didn't pick up. Where were you?"

"Where do you think? Tokyo is seven hours ahead of Paris. It's two in the morning, I was in bed."

"Oh, well I do hope it wasn't with Haruhi." Hikaru was trying to joke his way into our conversation. It was his way of being polite and avoiding difficult topics. The problem was his joke about Haruhi merely gave away what was bugging him at the moment I had called back. Haruhi had come back into his life and he was not going to ignore the fact that she was living with his twin brother.

"That's not funny." I wasn't in the position to joke back. "You called?"

I could hear my brother clicking his tongue and leaning back in his chair. It was eight at night in Paris, but he was still at work. "You're not in a very good mood right now, are you Kaoru?"

Clenching my fists again, I wanted to answer with a 'What do you think?!' but I held my tongue. "Hmph."

A long time ago, my brother wouldn't have given in. In fact, when we had still been in high school, if one of us had been in a bad position, the other would have tried and done everything possible to make things better. Of course seven years had changed a few things and once Hikaru realized I was not going to lighten up, he just got straight to the point, a trait he had picked up while being CEO of our family's company. "Otou-san wants another inspection done."

"What!?" I bit my tongue, my tone loud enough to wake up everyone in the house, including Rebekah who had her own bedroom downstairs.

"He wasn't happy with last month's report. Stocks weren't very high on your end. Lately, he's wanted more updates, reports, and inspections. He hasn't explained why."

"Wait, hold on. What do you mean? I sent the yearly report last month. Another inspection won't get anything done. There's no more progress here now than there was in January. The Spring Clothing Line won't be released until March in Los Angeles and Tokyo. In Seoul, Tohoshinki won't be advertising the Spring Line for another three weeks. "

"Yeah, but father seems pretty insistent. Kaoru, look, I'm not trying to push you here. It was Otou-san's idea to get another inspection and you know him as much as I do. I think he wants a monthly report now instead of a semester report every six months."

I let out a large sigh, "Hikaru, you know perfectly well how unrealistic that is. You're the CEO now aren't you? Give me a break and tell Otou-san to just wait for July's report. The Summer Line will be in full swing by then." For some reason, I knew something like this would come up. Our father wanted my job to be as inhumanely busy as possible.

Hikaru was not going to come to my rescue, "No can do. Otou-san wants another inspection done by the end of next week. According to him, you'll regret it if you don't get something done." Our bond was broken and though I wanted to do everything to be reconnected with my brother, I could only accept the fact that whatever I asked of him would no get done, mainly due to the fact that our father threatened to disown Hikaru as well if he ever did help me. As my father's last son, the threat was weak, but since I was disowned, my brother had become extremely cautious with his own position and I wasn't going to complain. I pushed my brother to the top and I wasn't going to let him step down from that position.

"Next week then that means-"

"I'm coming to visit, Kaoru." Hikaru was in a joking mood again. "Don't worry about it. I'm flying in next Sunday."

"No!" I grabbed my mouth and my head came crashing onto my desk. Sunday was Kohaku and Keisuke's birthday party at Kyouya's estate. I was not going to skip twin's birthday just for some damn inspection. Sadly how the hell could I explain that to my brother? "Fly in Monday, I won't be able to pick you up Sunday. I have other plans."

"What other plans would you have on a relaxing Sunday instead of seeing me, eh? You have a date with Haruhi or something?"

"No. Will you stop talking about Haruhi? She's not a part of any of this." I tried to soften my words and divert the conversation. "I just have plans and I can't reschedule."

Hikaru chuckled, "That's relief then. I was felt kind of awkward when Haruhi picked up your phone like she did… Fine. I'll try to come in Monday instead, but by Monday, I need a full report. No slacking. Just dish out everything you can give me by next Monday. Understand me, Kaoru?"

'Dishing out everything,' in six days was not possible when you had a company branches on three different continents. I was going to have some pissed off employees in the next couple of days.

"…Yeah." It hadn't been for father and what he knew, I wouldn't have stopped arguing. With a final sigh, I accepted my fate. "I'll get to work. I'll talk to you Monday."

"Good job, Kaoru. I know you can do it!"

There was a silence that followed. For a moment, I didn't know whether Hikaru had hung up on me or not. "Hikaru?"

"…So Haruhi isn't going to be permanently staying with you, will she?" This next statement caught me by surprise, but Hikaru had mumbled his words and had stopped talking as quickly as he had begun. He was still so immature about his emotions. He was married, but Haruhi had remained a prominent figure in his past. I couldn't tell if he was angry with her or not, but I could tell he was still quite upset with me as he was seven years ago when I told him to forget. That's why he was so irked by Haruhi speaking to him over my phone.

"Don't worry. It'll only be for two nights then she'll go and live somewhere else. There's nothing more to it." I tried to chuckle casually to show him it wasn't a big deal, but my laugh sounded more like I was mocking him for having to remind me.

"Oh… that's good." This time, I heard the click when he hung up the phone, ending our conversation without saying good-bye.

**Haruhi's POV**

I had to admit it; I had never seen Kaoru angry before. To put it simply, I was not aware that the younger twin of the Hitachiin family had a temper until he caught me speaking on the phone with Hikaru.

I don't know what surprised me first, the fact that Kaoru was actually angry with me or the knowledge that Hikaru still called his brother. Hadn't Kaoru been disowned? The questions keep on coming.

Both Hikaru and I had been shocked to hear each other's voices. Not only had it been two in the morning, but hearing the Hitachiin after seven years brought back memories just as seeing the rest of the group had done. The problem was that when I heard his voice, I felt unsure, as if Hikaru had called the wrong person. Kaoru had acted so distant when he spoke of Hikaru earlier at Kyouya's office, but Hikaru sounded extremely casual. The new differences between the twins I knew in high school had been astounding. I needed to ask Kaoru about his relationship between him and Hikaru. The only obstacle in my path in asking was Kaoru's anger.

It had been clearly my fault I knew that much, but I didn't know talking with the other twin would irk Kaoru the way it did. Due to stupidity and drowsiness, I guess I nearly let Kohaku's name slip, but was evident anger truly a way to deal with the knowledge being revealed?

After Kaoru stopped me from speaking any further, I didn't really know whether to speak or move. I had gotten on Tamaki and Kyouya's nerves already back at the office, but Kaoru had been newly added on the list. Stress had taken its toll on all the previous members of the host club and I had crashed in so suddenly into the whole mess.

I couldn't really say anything to defend myself. All I could do was obey the young father's words ands leave him to deal with his brother. I would get answers sometime or another; I would make sure of it.

Fatigue caught up with me before I could think further about the topic at hand. By the time I woke up the next morning, daylight had filtered into my room through the large window behind and above my bed. The sun did not ease the headache that had formed from jetlag and travel exhaustion, but whatever I did to go back to sleep seemed futile. Tiredly, I yawned and sluggishly turned over, seeing what looked like an alarm clock, its face directed away from my sight. I narrowed my sleep-ridden eyes and dragged my body over, reaching for the clock, "What time is-"

The sight of Kohaku and Keisuke in my room rummaging through my luggage a few feet away made me freeze, my arm still in mid-air as it reached for the clock.

My suitcase was wide open and for some reason the pair of toddlers were very interested by what they were finding in my luggage. Their interest in the articles of clothing, random forms of paraphernalia, and many souvenirs seemed much stronger than their attention to me. For a moment I stared at them, trying hard to persuade myself that I wasn't dreaming. I was actually seeing Kohaku holding the pink and black lacy bra that Molly had gotten me on my last birthday from Victoria's Secret, and his twin was innocently inspecting the matching pair of panties.

When my mind finally caught up with me, I swiftly realized the blatant intrusion into my belongings and underwear. "**HEY!**" I called out roughly in **English**, sleep slurring my speech. "**What in the world are you doing!?**"

The pair quickly turned in my direction, amber gazes wide with surprise. I wasn't fully aware that by habit I had spoken in fluent English, a language the two could recognize, but couldn't understand when spoken quickly. Kohaku and Keisuke gave each other a dreaded look and I yelled out again, "**What are you doing with my underwear?**!"

Either it was because I yelling at them in a foreign language or I definitely did not look very approachable newly awoken, the two did not move. Shaking my head, I dragged myself towards the edge of the bed. Leaning over the edge, my approaching form did not make Kohaku and Keisuke come closer. Instead, out of pure instinct, the pair of three year olds screamed before rushing out of the room still in possession of my under-garments. "AHHHHHHH!"

The boys' high pitched scream made my head painfully pound and threw me off guard. In a second I lost my weak balance and came crashing off the mattress in a heap. Quickly regaining my composure, I did my best not to waste time and jumped to my feet. "Kohaku, Keisuke!!"

I rushed out of the room and into the large hallway. Stopping, I rubbed my skull and tried to control the ache that returned whenever I turned my head. At the corner of my eye, I saw a red and blue flash of color running around the corner. "It's too early in the morning for this." I hissed, but found myself following the two boys, my underwear clearly in mind.

Before long, I found myself in the hallway of both the boys' bedrooms and the office I had stumbled into the night before. The memory of the night did not come to mind at first for the sight of Kohaku's door lying open held my attention for much longer. With a sigh, I headed towards the older twin's room, "**Kohaku, Keisuke. When I get my hands on you…**"

"Haruhi?!" For the second time in fifteen minutes I found myself freezing, my hand on the doorknob of the door. At first, I thought it had been Kaoru and his temper apprehending me once more, this time for threatening his children, but the familiar glint of glasses and the sparkle of violet eyes corrected me. "Did we interrupt something?"

My head came flying in Kyouya and Tamaki's direction before the headache returned. He and Tamaki had just arrived from the stairs at the end of the hall, and for a split-second I could see genuine confusion on the blonde's features. Kyouya blinked before readjusting his glasses, "I apologize if we did-"

"**No!** I-I mean no." I spoke, forcing my English into Japanese. I straightened, but made sure to open Kohaku's door slightly at the same time. My face heated up as I became aware of my surroundings and my appearance, yet I swiftly calmed myself down. "Haha. You're not interrupting anything. I was just- uh- we were just-uh-"

Beside the Ohtori, I noticed Tamaki's eyes following something behind me. I twisted around to follow his gaze and found Kohaku and Keisuke attempting to sneak away. They noticed my gaze and for a long second five pairs of eyes exchanged glances before finally, in a last attempt at escape, the twins bolted. Before I realized my actions, I was in mid-chase, "Oh, no you don't!"

For a pair of three-year-olds, the new Hitachiin twins were pretty fast. I overlooked Tamaki's call after me as I ran after the two who still held onto my bra and panty for dear life. With the realization that they were not going to get away, Kohaku and Keisuke gave a cry, "PAPA!!" With this, they rushed into their father's office and slammed the door in my face before I could catch up.

I stood in my place, breathing hard. I had never found Hikaru and Kaoru this troublesome. At least they knew better than to go into my clothes. I shook my head and ran my hands through my hair before I realized Tamaki and Kyouya had followed me. I turned and tried to smooth out my pajamas as best I could, "Good morning?" I muttered weakly.

Tamaki was the first to react as he squealed and ran into me. "Haruhi!! Good morning!! My dear daughter seemed to have gotten such a good night of sleep. You're already running around!"

I didn't try to break away from the taller man's grip, but began to fidget with Kyouya's accompanying reply, "Simple correction: Good Afternoon. It's half past one." For some reason, the Shadow King did not smile after his remark like he normally did when he spoke to correct Tamaki's mistakes. On closer inspection, Kyouya looked a bit annoyed. Silently, I prayed it wasn't due to my appearance.

"Gosh, I must've been more tired that I first thought." I admitted to break the stiff atmosphere Kyouya had placed around himself. Unfortunately, it didn't work very well.

The blonde man merely held me tighter, "Oh, well at least you got a full night and morning of sleep. You must have so much energy!"

I was starting to have a hard time breathing. "Tamaki… you're the one with so… much… energy."

Finally releasing me, Tamaki nodded. "You noticed? Well…" He threw on one of the random poses he had created in high school, "It's because I drank a nice large cup of commoner's coffee today! It gives me so much energy!!"

I couldn't answer his declaration for Kyouya had strolled behind him and tapped the blonde hard on the head with what appeared to be a large stack of files. Tamaki winced as Kyouya made a short remark, but it lacked the playfulness Kyouya normally had at times like these. "I doubt commoner's coffee will give you any beneficial qualities than that of the normal coffee we consume, Tamaki."

"Kyouya, is something the matter?" I queried abruptly, "You're not acting… normal."

The gaze he gave me in return made me want to pull back, but Kyouya replied, "Nothing's wrong, Haruhi. I merely have work on my mind at the moment. Of course as busy as I was, this one insisted he come along to see you." Kyouya paused, motioned to Tamaki, and strolled towards the door to Kaoru's office, gently knocking on it with the back of his hand, "Excuse me, but will you entertain him for a bit. I have some business to take care of with Kaoru."

I wanted to question further, but as if on cue, Tamaki wrapped his arms around my shoulders from behind, "Daddy gets to spend time with his daughter again! This will be the best part of my day!" I tried to move, but the strength of Tamaki's arms surprised me and held me place. I stopped resisting him, when his voice suddenly dropped to a whisper, "Now, now Haruhi. Let Okaa-san go, ok? He's a tad bit stressed due to a phone call he got from Kaoru this morning. Let's just say, both Kaoru and Kyouya are a little busy."

Pondering over his words for a moment, I added, "Well, between you and me, I don't think Kaoru is very happy. You see, um, last night…"

"Kaoru, I'm coming in." Kyouya spoke loudly through the door and pushed it open without warning.

As the door opened, I caught the Hitachiin in mid-sentence, "What's this!? Where did you get this?"

Awkward. Uncomfortable. I couldn't really come up with words that could define the next moment. Everything had been placed in position to make the whole event into the perfect example of irony. I had stopped with the words, 'last night', Kyouya had opened the door without a second thought, and Kaoru was sitting at his desk, a phone wedged between his shoulder and right ear, my bra hanging from his left hand, my panty pinched in his right, a blush reddening his entire face. Kohaku and Keisuke stood in front of their parent innocently, actually thinking of an answer to the question he had just asked.

Gulping, I felt Tamaki's arms holding me tighten their grip. For what seemed to be an eternity, the three of us could only stare at Kaoru, Kohaku, and Keisuke. Kaoru pulled his eyes off his sons and looked to us. He was in so much shock he couldn't even drop the underwear he had in his hands.

After what seemed like a very long time, Kohaku and Keisuke suddenly declared the answer to their father's question, 'What's this!?'

"Oh, it's what girls wear to the beach!" Kohaku answered.

"Why's it so itchy and have so many holes in it?" Keisuke added curiously.

I felt the color seep from my face when Kohaku suddenly pulled out a tampon that had come from my luggage as well. The blood that I had lost traveled and darkened the blush in Kaoru's face. "Look, maybe Oba-chan blew it up!" The older twin explained, showing the tampon to his brother.

"Oh! It's… it's… what's it called… it's DYNAMITE!!!" Keisuke had a wide smile on his face, clearly happy for his accomplishment at remembering the word for the explosive.

Kohaku nodded, "Wait… isn't it supposed to be… red?" At this last word, Kaoru grabbed the tampon from Kohaku's hand and placed everything on his desk quickly. "Hey, Papa!"

"Stop! Stop it right now, you two!" Kaoru hissed. It seemed we had all just suddenly realized that he had been on the phone. Eyes widening, he turned to the phone, "**Ah! I'm sorry for that, sir. I- I will need to apologize deeply, but I need to call you back. Forgive me, but I am in a bit of a bind. Uh- I will call you back.**"

Kaoru hung up and was on his feet, his hands up. The blush had not left and he shook his head desperately. The twenty-four year old was speechless and his mouth flew open and closed like a fish gasping for air.

Beside me, Kyouya cleared his throat awkwardly. His face had also filled with color. I bit my bottom lip and suddenly it hit me; Kyouya wasn't the problem. I looked up at Tamaki, who looked to be tottering between anger and depression.

The boys seemed to have noticed their 'Second-Daddy-In-Training' and had pressed themselves into Kaoru's thighs. Uniformly, they voiced everyone's concern, "Papa, Tama-Oji-san looks scary."

Scary was an understatement. Tamaki was boiling angry and was about to spontaneously combust. I gazed in Kyouya's direction, but I could tell he was still calculating what we were supposed to do, beads of sweat had begun to slide down his face. Tension filled the room in a suffocating cloud; it felt like we were trying to find a way to unarm a ticking bomb.

By this time, Tamaki was on fire.

I looked to Kaoru, who was backing away slowly trying to find a way to shield the twins behind him. Kohaku and Keisuke were not helping, refusing to let go of Kaoru's pant legs.

And just as quickly as Tamaki got angry, he exploded and charged in Kaoru's direction with a mighty roar. None of us could stop him and the many words that flew from his mouth. In an attempt to protect the twins, Kaoru pushed them under his desk and ducked, prostrating himself his forehead directly on the ground. "I'm sorry Tamaki-sempai. It was not my intention to be a 'lecherous perverted man with no respect for the female guest of my home'." Kaoru's apology, which had somehow included Tamaki's name towards him before the blonde had even finished saying it, not only caught me off guard, but had surprised the charging drama king. In shock he tripped and flew over Kaoru's bowing form into the opposite wall.

The fall was so violent… it knocked Tamaki unconscious.

**********

"Oww! Haruhi, that hurts!" An hour after the fall and after Tamaki was dragged downstairs and onto the couch, I found myself still in my pajamas, nursing the Suou and making sure Kohaku and Keisuke weren't messing with my things. A large bump had been formed on the blonde's forehead from Tamaki's not-so-graceful fall over Kaoru, and the Suou would not stop complaining about. Though I could've been kinder, I pushed the ice pack down harder against the bruising welt. "Oww! Haruhi!"

"Oh, be quiet Tamaki. Stop complaining." I muttered, taking his hand and placing it where my own had been over the ice pack on his head. "It was your fault for losing your temper. You've been like this since high school. Can't one day go by without you going off on a Hitachiin twin for being perverted or something?"

"But Haruhi, Daddy was very worried about you. Were you not offended by the sight of your… your… undergar-oww!" I pushed down on the welt just to shut the blonde up.

I rolled my eyes and stood from my spot at Tamaki's side. We were in the large room with the fifth wall and piano, where Tamaki was lying on the couch in his wounded glory and the twins were lying on the rug in front of the plasma screen on the other side of the room, watching what I could recognize was a Hamtaro DVD. I moved away and sat down in another seat in the room with a sigh. _At least, I was able to put my underwear and that tampon away._

Seconds came and went, and I took a few moments to watch the television. I had never expected Kohaku or Keisuke to be fond of the anime about… Hamsters. After a few more minutes, my mind began to wander once more. For the umpteenth time, Kaoru was on my mind especially now. It was difficult not to think about the Hitachiin with what I had seen while situating an unconscious Tamaki downstairs.

Like the night before, Kaoru had scolded the two boys for going through my things. The only explanation I could get for why the two had decided to look through my bags was that they were bored because their 'Papa' was busy working. Being that I was one of the only women they knew (Rebekah washed and kept her clothing private), the sight of my underwear and tampons had intrigued them. Other than the scolding, Kaoru had placed them downstairs near Tamaki and that was the end of it. Instead of apologizing exceedingly, he humbly asked me to watch Kohaku and Keisuke as he and Kyouya got some work done upstairs. What was peculiar was that Kaoru looked as exhausted as I felt when he asked.

Something told me he hadn't returned to sleep after Hikaru's call the night before and all this new work had been brought about by that phone call. With this in mind, I regretted answering Hikaru in the first place.

"His brother called last night didn't he?" I was pulled out of my thoughts and glanced at Tamaki who had spoken. "Kyouya told me. It seems Kaoru called him for some last minute information. It's the deadlines are never so sudden like this."

I stared at him as he spoke. "What are you talking about?"

Tamaki moved his head tenderly to return my gaze. "Did you ever wonder how Kaoru ever survived after Maria passed away?" The blonde took a deep breath and let it escape through his teeth. The mature Tamaki was still so new to me, this new facet of this character so different from his usual bipolar self. "They gave him a second chance, but in return he had to sacrifice everything else. I won't be surprised if he decides to skip meals to get this next report done by the next deadline."

Kohaku and Keisuke were engulfed by the television to notice how their uncle was so easily speaking of the topic at hand. I listened intently, hoping that Tamaki would elaborate and give me a few of the answers to the many questions I held.

And as if he knew exactly what I wanted, the blonde sat up slowly and looked directly at me. "I think…" Tamaki began, keeping the ice pack to his head, "you'll need to understand what Kyouya and I had to do to keep Kaoru going when everyone was against him…"

For another hour, I listened to the mature side of Tamaki as he explained without interruption why Hikaru called the night before.

Hikaru had a reason to be casual; Kaoru had a reason to be distant. What I had returned to were no longer two brothers, but boss and employee. One wrong move and Kaoru could lose everything, his job, his home, and even his 'sons'. If it had only been Hikaru in control, maybe things wouldn't have turned out the way they did, but as long Hikaru and his father still co-owned the company, Kaoru couldn't do anything but work and hope for the best.

The situation remained complex, even after Tamaki tried to depict the technical predicament between businesses. As a lawyer, I was able to understand some of things he said, but it was still hard to grasp, as the fact that Hikaru wasn't doing anything to help Kaoru was already hard to believe. Kaoru seemed to be suffering, but Hikaru had no idea how much Kaoru had sacrificed. And if the situation continued like this, Hikaru would never know.

Before long, I found myself with Tamaki trying to feed and care for the twins. To my surprise, Tamaki was actually quite skilled now at taking care of children and was quick to make simple dishes that the boys could snack on. I was mainly in charge of the larger meals and made sure, Kohaku, Keisuke… and Tamaki weren't getting into trouble. By the time night had fallen once more, Kyouya finally left Kaoru's office upstairs and took Tamaki home without many words in my direction. Kaoru would then finally leave his office as well, bathe the boys, and tuck them in, before returning to his work. We didn't exchange many words as well.

For the next four days, the same thing came to happen. Tamaki and Kyouya would come in the morning. Kyouya would disappear in Kaoru's office, while Tamaki stayed with me and the twins. I found Kaoru too busy to realize that I had overstayed my welcome, and it was obvious he needed the extra help, for Rebekah had to go to school every day and couldn't stay with Kohaku and Keisuke. What made me uneasy was the fact that even after four days, neither Kohaku or Keisuke seemed to mind that they saw their father only twice a day. Early in the morning when he told them to listen to Tamaki and I, and late at night when he put them to bed. What's more, Kaoru's work habits were unhealthy for even after Kyouya left for the day, Kaoru was still making phone calls deep into the night.

With the passing of four days I found myself living with Kaoru for more than the two days as was expected. Though I didn't want to bring that fact up, I couldn't help but wonder if I was being rude, but Kaoru seemed fine with my continued presence. What's more, with my prolonged stay the new pair of Hitachiin twins had found me to be a very good playmate. I was happy that unlike the twins before them, Kohaku and Keisuke thought of me higher than a 'plaything' or toy. Eventually they began to be less troublesome and started to listen to me more. They weren't pushing me away like they had tried to do when I had first met them.

As the days flew by, I also noticed how similar and different the twins were from each other as well from the pair I had spent time with in Ouran seven years ago. Kohaku seemed just as stubborn as Hikaru had been, but it was obvious Kaoru had raised the older twin to be a bit more empathetic than his 'Uncle' who lived in Paris. Keisuke, on the other hand, had a belying problem with social interaction. He followed his brother wherever the first twin went and was constantly telling Kohaku what was right and wrong. Keisuke seemed to be somewhat smarter than his brother, but once Kohaku disappeared, whether it be to go to the bathroom or follow his favorite Uncle (Tamaki) around, Keisuke would pull into himself and keep quiet. Where one twin was headstrong the other was deftly shy.

With the passing of only four days, I was starting to wonder how Kaoru survived raising the two on his own.

It mustn't have been easy.

Kaoru made that evident on the night of the fourth day.

I had spent Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday night in Kaoru's home, caring for the boys while Kaoru tried to finish what seemed to be a list of responsibilities in five different languages. One day, I found him struggling over translating some documents he received from Seoul into comprehendible files in English. Another day, I found him awake at four in the morning, speaking to someone from New York. Overall, I was afraid Kaoru would kill himself. For four straight days he didn't stop working.

It wasn't until Friday night when it seemed like Kaoru finally took a breath. He was exhausted, but he was still able to muster up the energy to spend a few hours with the twins before they had to go to bed for the night. I didn't know whether the young father had just given up on the work he was doing or he had finally finished the job he had been given. Yet aside from the thoughts the persisted in my mind, I could only watch him lying tiredly with Kohaku and Keisuke on the recliner in the den, doing his best to keep awake and listen to the boys telling him about their day with Oba-chan and Oji-san.

Though a children's movie was playing on the plasma screen at the other end of the room, Kohaku and Keisuke's young and short attention spans allowed them to be easily distracted by their father's voice. The entire household was there, made up of Rebekah, Kaoru, the twins, and I, but no one was really watching just talking and listening to the Kohaku and Keisuke go on about something random that had caught their attention that day. "Kohaku, Keisuke. How many days are there before your birthday?" Kaoru queried simply, trying to stifle a yawn and gaze at the three years olds that snuggled against his chest on the open recliner. The boys turned to their father with identical grins.

"Two days!" Kohaku and Keisuke piped up at once excitement swiftly filling their forms.

Kohaku continued, "Tomorrow is Saturday. Mañana es Sabado!"

Keisuke quickly finished, "Y entonces en Domingo es nuestros cumpleaños! And then on Sunday it's our birthday!"

Kaoru chuckled and nodded, "You're right. My, aren't you two growing up fast? Hmmm, I can't remember, where are you two having your birthday again?" The Hitachiin questioned innocently.

Without pause the two replied unanimously, "At Kyouya-Oji-san's house!"

"Tama-Oji-san's going to bring Antoinette!"

"And Rebekah Nee-chan's going to bake us a BIIIG cake!"

I watched the boys continue on, their anticipation too strong to control as they spoke of how much fun they would be having in only two days. My eyes fell on Kaoru as they spoke and I noticed he nodded and smiled but refused to say anything. For some reason, the smile that graced his lips seemed more of melancholy than of elation, but I couldn't figure out why. Before long, Kohaku and Keisuke had ranted themselves to sleep, and within minutes of the two drifting off, Kaoru was close behind.

The next morning, I came to learn why happiness had not filled the Hitachiin's face when his sons spoke of such a joyful occasion.

The next morning, I awoke to find the boys alone in their rooms and Kaoru nowhere to be found.

**Normal POV**

It filled her with dread when she could not find the twenty-four year old Hitachiin anywhere in his house. She searched and looked, but Haruhi could not find Kaoru anywhere.

Yes, Kaoru had spent four straight days working himself to death, but he had never left the house without leaving some type of note or message telling the rest of the house where he had gone. Besides, if he had left, he would have woken Haruhi up or he would have had Rebekah make his absence known.

After looking through the house, Haruhi made her way back to Kohaku's bedroom where Kohaku and Keisuke were quietly playing amongst themselves. Calmly, the two boys passed their pet boa constrictor between each other and placed poor Tortuga in the midst of an intricate makeshift city they had made with mega blocks, cardboard boxes, and what seemed to be the left foot of one of their father's shoes. The two didn't notice their Oba-chan walk in looking a bit worried.

"Ahh, there's a monster in the city!" Kohaku muttered with a giggle while pushing Tortuga deeper into the array of buildings. Keisuke, as if on cue, grabbed two of block people that littered the area and faked their escape.

Haruhi watched the two for a second and stepped forward into the room, "Kohaku, Keisuke." She called and came to squat down by the twins who continued to play.

Glancing up, Kohaku and Keisuke smiled, "Good Morning, Oba-chan. Do you want to play with us? Tortuga's going to destroy the whole city."

"… 'In a fit of rage…'" The older twin began.

"' that will bring destruction to the entire land'!! Well, that's what Papa says when he plays." The younger twin finished.

Haruhi shook her head and received sad looks in return. She did her best to overlook the gazes she had been given and asked, "Boys, where is your father?"

The only answer Kohaku and Keisuke gave her was an oblivious shrug of the shoulders. "We don't know. He just leaves sometimes."

" 'Just leaves?' " Surprise filled the brunette's features. "Does he do this a lot?"

Once again the boys lifted then dropped their shoulders, more interested in the toys at hand. They didn't seem to want to answer Haruhi and she felt that they were used to Kaoru's absences like this. The problem was that Kaoru had left so suddenly and she was the only one panicking. _Maybe I'm being paranoid_. She thought to herself. Why was she worrying herself crazy just because Kaoru wasn't around? Maybe he had to go to work for a few hours. That wasn't unusual for CEOs and their employees even on a Saturday morning.

Frowning to herself, Haruhi observed the boys' little game. Kohaku would pick up Tortuga with one hand and knock a few buildings down with his right. Keisuke would work on making all the block townspeople run away, screaming lightly as he did so. Suddenly a knock echoed into the room and the three looked up to find Rebekah standing in the doorway.

"Good Morning, Fujioka-san." The maid bowed and greeted. "Haku, Kei I have breakfast here for you."

The strong girl held up a tray of an assortment of dishes, cereal, fruit, even oatmeal. She placed the tray down carefully at a small dining set in the room just big enough for three year olds with seating for two. Kohaku and Keisuke quickly got to their feet and headed for their small table taking a seat where Rebekah instructed them.

"Rebekah?" Haruhi spoke making the teen turn. Over the days she had stayed with the younger Hitachiin twin, his charges, and his maid, Haruhi had learned that Rebekah worked and lived with Kaoru so that she could go to school in Japan. She had come from Germany, which explained her rough and open nature, as well as explained why she went off in German at random intervals of time. The German girl nodded to acknowledge the guest. "Why aren't you at school?"

Placing a bowl of fruit in front of Keisuke and a bowl of cereal and milk in front of Kohaku, Rebekah replied, "Oh, well Kaoru-sama called the school to excuse me for the day. He'll need help with setting up for the party tomorrow and I have to get the cake ready. Once Kaoru-sama comes home we'll be working on calling the caterer and making the desserts."

"Cake!!" Kohaku and Keisuke declared at the sound of the word, before going back to their food.

"Is there something you like for breakfast? Toast? Cereal?" Rebekah offered the tray of food politely with a genuine smile.

Haruhi shook her head, "Actually… I wanted to know where Kaoru is. Do you know?"

Abruptly the blonde girl stopped what she was doing and glanced away. Either she had an answer or she didn't, Haruhi would find out. Rebekah frowned and placed her tray back down. The teen crossed her arms, but did not speak. Minutes of silence came and went, but the maid did not give Haruhi the words she desired.

"Rebekah, I want to know. I can't help, but find this unusual. Kaoru's not someone who would just leave like that. I mean did he not tell you where he was going?"

With a sigh the maid nodded, "I already know where Kaoru-sama went. He always disappears the day before Kohaku and Keisuke's birthday. He does it every year." Her eyes went distant, yet she rapidly regained her composure, "He'll be coming home soon. He always does."

"Hold on, but where-"

"Fujioka-san, I bet if you ask him, he'll tell you." Rebekah was swift to interrupt. At the same time, the two girls looked to the pair of three year olds who were gazing at them curiously while eating their breakfasts. In the end, Haruhi gave in and stopped asking.

Unfortunately, Haruhi's self control began to weaken after Kaoru had been gone for more than five hours. Something was wrong for even the boys seemed to lack the energy they normally possessed. They did not ask her to play, but remained in their bedroom playing with Tortuga, coloring and drawing, and conversing in Spanish, which Haruhi was completely lost in translation. Not being able to leave the house without knowing where Kaoru had gone, Haruhi spent the rest of the day helping Rebekah clean and get the food for the party ready. By the end of the fifth hour, Haruhi found herself washing an assortment of utensils Rebekah had used to bake a large Western-styled Birthday Cake.

Ding-Dong!

The sound of the doorbell brought the two women away from their work. Rebekah stopped mixing the cake batter in her arms and placed the bowl down. She rinsed her hands and gave Haruhi a simple smile before hurrying out to the front door. The brunette waited patiently, sighing with relief that Kaoru had finally come home and that she could ask him all the questions that had been bouncing around in her head. She had made a promise to help Kaoru, but how could she when he was never around?

To her disappointment, Rebekah led Kyouya and Tamaki into the kitchen instead.

The Suou and Ohtori were silent when they entered the room. They didn't seem to be in light spirits and when Haruhi turned to greet them, the two were already gazing directly at her. Haruhi did not smile in greeting, for she could tell that something was going on. "Kyouya… Tamaki. What's the matter?"

Kyouya took his cell phone from his pocket and flipped it open without answering. He pressed a combination of buttons and then held it out to Haruhi. Tamaki did not explain what his companion was doing, but observed the brunette who tentatively took the phone from the Shadow King's hand. Haruhi gazed down at the screen of the device and found that Kyouya had just called Kaoru. She pressed the speaker button and the kitchen was quickly filled by the ringing of the opposite line.

After ten long rings, Haruhi hung up and returned the phone to the Ohtori. Tamaki could only sigh and stick his hands in his pockets. Before Haruhi could speak, Kyouya had already begun. "How long has he been gone?"

Shrugging, Haruhi did her best to give Kyouya an adequate answer, "Um… five… almost six hours."

"Did he ever call?"

"No."

"Did he say good-bye?"

"I don't think so."

Rebekah carefully interjected, "Kaoru-sama said good-bye to the twins and made sure to wake me up before he left this morning."

"When did he leave?"

"Eight maybe nine in the morning."

Haruhi placed her attention on the maid who did her best to avoid the brunette's eyes. Once again she was at a lost. Everyone around her knew what was going on and they weren't elaborating a thing. Kyouya nodded and placed his phone back in his pocket; Tamaki took out his own cell and began to dial.

The Fujioka watched as this went on. Curiosity finally getting the better of her she demanded, "Wait, what's going on? This is ridiculous. What are you guys talking about?"

"Kaaoorruu! It's Tamaki! Can't you pick up the phone now? Pleeeeease?" The blonde recited lightly into the phone. Haruhi could see the way Tamaki sounded was the exact opposite of how his body language was expressing. She narrowed her eyes and wanted to finally get an answer, but Tamaki and Kyouya were not helping.

"Haruhi." The said brunette looked to Kyouya who had called her. "You really don't know what's going on, do you?"

Tamaki turned off his own phone and placed it back in his jacket pocket. He muttered something barely audible, "He'll be there all night trying to clear his head."

"No… I don't." Haruhi came to admit. With a sigh, she stood her ground and further explained her position. "This isn't fair. All of you seem to know something I don't. Kaoru worked himself to exhaustion these past fours days, but I couldn't really do anything about it. Now Kaoru's suddenly disappeared and I don't know if I could have stopped him from suddenly going off like he did or if I am the one to blame for his disappearance. Kyouya, Tamaki, I can't just sit here and do nothing. You wanted me to help him, but for some reason I don't understand enough to get to him. I still want to get answers and I still want to fix everything, but how can I when I still don't know the entire story."

Kyouya readjusted his glasses and cleared his throat. "All right. If you desire answers I will give them to you." He crossed his arms, "Now ask."

"Where is he?"

"At the airport."

"Why?"

"Because Maria has no grave."

"What do you mean?"

"Maria was born in the US so her body is no longer here."

"But why-"

"Because he can't go anywhere else."

Tamaki stepped forward trying to elaborate, "Haruhi, uh, what Okaa-san's trying to say is that Kaoru's at the airport because Maria isn't buried here." Sadness darkened the blonde's normally bright features as he continued to explain, "Tomorrow is the twins' birthday, but it's also the day Maria… passed away. Every year since then, well he's reserved the day before to… self reflect a bit. When she died, he had her cremated… and then flew her home to the States… to her mother's side of the family."

The raven-haired boy stiffened at Tamaki's last words. Difficultly he finished, "That's why he's at the airport because he has nowhere else to go."

Haruhi did not say more and pondered over their words for a few moments. She had completely forgotten about Maria's death. It had never occurred to her that the young mother had passed away within hours of her sons' birth. "When will he come home?" She thought out loud.

Clicking his tongue, Kyouya took a deep breath and exhaled. "Who knows? That's why you're going to bring him home for us." The Ohtori looked off into the distance as if recalling something and returned to the present, "He can't let go of the past seven years. He won't look to the present or the future at hand. Haruhi, you are the only person who will be able to make him realize that it is time to look ahead and leave the past behind."

Shaking her head, Haruhi frowned, "But how can I do that? I've been gone for those seven years."

Suddenly Tamaki smiled, "That's the point. We all have lived a past without you. It's time to remind Kaoru that you're back. Remind him of the girl he and Hikaru admired so much. We admired so much. Everything fell apart once you left, but I know you'll be able to pick all the pieces. Besides, you're so good at thinking ahead. I bet you'll be able to make Kaoru aware that he deserves happiness too."

Silence once again filled the room as Haruhi contemplated Tamaki and Kyouya's words. She remembered the photos in the den. The pictures of Maria, Kohaku, Keisuke, and Hikaru only reminded Kaoru of the past and the pain he had to feel everyday. They were right. Kaoru couldn't let such memories go. Even when Maria had no grave to honor, he still sat for hours at the airport he had left her remains reliving the pain of the loss. Knowing Kaoru, the man must have never officially grieved for the woman he fell in love with, instead, he must've reminded himself that Hikaru was the man who made love to her and was the father of Kohaku and Keisuke. Clenching her fists, Haruhi finally understood what she had to do. She looked directly at Kyouya and Tamaki, grinning confidently, "Then let's bring him home…"

**Kaoru POV**

So many different people are walking around me as I sit in the midst of the hustle and bustle of the Tokyo airport that is farthest from my home. The last day I saw her, the airport had been the same way.

It scares me sometimes. The only place I can remember her in this country would be in an airport and for some reason, I still find myself returning year after year to the same place, as if it some headstone or shrine. I had not cried when I let her go. All I had done was place her in the hands of the man who I knew as her second cousin. We did not share words; we only shook hands and exchanged bows. He could not speak Japanese, I could not speak English well enough to be understood. There's was nothing we could do but acknowledge that the remains that had been Maria had once known a man named Kaoru Hitachiin and a man who was her second cousin.

I had cried when she died. Yet it wasn't the type of mourning that was appropriate for the loss of a loved one. I had shed a few tears for a few minutes, but shock won out in the end and I could only sit at her bedside, the boys in my arms. Our eyes dry of all tears. I couldn't even mourn for the twins who had just lost their mother before she could have held them for the first time. Why did I feel the need to be strong when I should have been crying?

Four years. Every year the tears that did not fall that day come and I don't try to stop them. There is a pain that one feels while crying, but it's the type of pain that hurts and relieves, making one forget about everything else.

And at times, I like to forget… everything.

"Kaoru?" That voice. I'm caught by surprise and don't know whether to turn or remain in my place. Blinking, I become aware of the tears that have been falling and the pain that stiffens my whole body. I stay seated and for a moment I do not react. "Kaoru?"

She's standing before me and at first, I can only recognize her as one of the people who had been part of an illusion that I hadn't seen since high school. She has been gone for seven years.

"Haruhi?" My voice. It sounds hoarse. There is still pain dripping from my eyes and heart. It's too late to hide it. "What…What are you doing here?"

She sits beside me on the bench in the middle of the airport. The place where I mourn, no matter how crazy I look. She looks at me and smiles gently.

"I was worried about you." She says, "We all were worried. Why don't you come home now?"

I gaze at her and cannot believe my eyes. Seven years. I broke my brother's heart because she went away. I fell in love with the woman my brother slept with and took his children as my own because he could not feel the same emotion he had felt for Haruhi for another girl. Why did she come back? Why is she trying to make things better again?

I start to wipe the wet streaks on my face, but her hands stop me, "It's ok. It's ok to cry." She speaks so calmly. No one has ever told me it was ok. "I'm sorry about what happened to Maria. Look, if you don't mind, could you tell me what happened? When my mom died, I thought that keeping her death inside myself would make it better, but sometimes, it feels good to tell someone so you won't have to carry such a heavy memory alone."

Her words. They strike the pain and make it drip again. I find myself crying harder, but the words come tumbling out. "…The bleeding wouldn't stop… so they gave her something… to stop the blood…" Before I realize it, it's too late to stop talking. "…When the bleeding stopped… they had to take the boys away to be prepped… She was so happy… yet so patient… willing to wait… to see them for the very first time…She was just… sitting there… saying… that she… never did regret what she had done…She told me… that I… would be a great father…and then…"

I stop. The tears swelling up and streaming. I find my hand reaching to cover my mouth before the moan can escape. My body is trembling. This is the first time I have told anyone about the day she passed away. I don't want to continue, but Haruhi is there. Her eyes urge me to keep going. "…She fell unconscious…"

I cannot say more. Haruhi knows the ending now. She knows that Maria does not wake up. She knows Maria dies because the blood in her brain stopped moving.

I sit in my place and cry. I do not stop crying for a very long time.

And even if it hurt, it also felt good. It felt so good cry.

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OMG! I'm DONE!!! Oh my gosh, my poor brain!! This chapter is so long and so hard to write. I rewrote the whole chapter from scratch and adding things here and there. I'M SO SORRY FOR MAKING IT SOOO LONG. I did my best to depict Kaoru's emotions in this chapter, but I feel I started to lack in Haruhi's sections. I'm sorry… I don't know if this was very good. Ok, I better stop. I've been in front of this computer for eight hours now! I really should be doing my AP work.

**REMEMBER TO REVIEW!!!** Click the link below and leave a comment!! PLEASE!!

Thanks for reading everyone!! Thanks for all the reviews. It makes my day seriously!

**Next Time: "**Happy Birthday!" The day has arrived and Kohaku and Keisuke can finally enjoy the day they've been waiting for an entire year. New Faces and Old Faces come to attend the anticipated day. Everyone is bringing the adorable second-generation Hitachiin twins gifts from all over the world.

But what will happen when Kyouya-Oji-san gives his nephews a gift no one expected?

"What's the matter? What's going on, Kohaku, Keisuke?!"

"Papa, Papa. That man stole your face !!"

…Stay tuned…


	7. The Player Who Did Not Lose

**Really long chapter again… sorry!**

Hi everyone! Yay Chapter six is up and hopefully it was safely updated the first and only time!! I'm happy that I'm still entertaining you all. You know, I love entertaining people with my work, no matter what people say!! Ok, I really don't have much to say right now… it's like 2:30 in the morning when I'm writing this intro, so before I fall asleep on my keyboard, let's start Chapter six, shall we?

Chapter Six, I summon thee!

**Last Time:** Living under Kaoru's roof is more complicated than Haruhi had first thought as she finds the young father in a difficult position between the expectations of a father and brother, and the responsibilities of raising twin sons. Kaoru does his best to be superman, but he tries to keep everything he feels within himself to remain strong for those around him. Yet how much longer can he keep going. Human beings have their limits.

We're at chapter six, do we still need to be reminded that I don't own anything, but the words and storyline?

**PLEASE REVIEW** I love reviews and what you guys think. If you have any ideas for the storyline I'm always open for more. Oh… please don't flame. Constructively criticize, but don't flame.

Here we go!!! Second star to the right and off to Never- My Fanfiction!!

* * *

Chapter Six: The Player Who Did Not Lose

Normal POV

The young man paced around the room in evident panic. He stood in what seemed like a casual town hospital waiting room in the town closest to his home. Not many people paid any attention to him. Other men and women walking passed the young man without even giving him a second glance. No one knew him. In fact, no one had ever spoken to him, let alone seen the twenty year old. The man was a foreigner who spoke with an accent. He had a difficult time pronouncing the words with silent letters and with the 'l' sound. Overall, he kept to himself. He was never seen walking around town unless he was shopping, and, more often than not, searching for work.

No one who lived in the small rural town in France actually knew who he was or why he had moved to such a tiny place in the middle of practically nowhere. Ignorance had produced nothing but gossip over the mysterious young man's motive. For young girls, he was the handsome mystery man with gentle eyes, but a mischievous grin. For the juvenile boys, he was a very dangerous rival, his strongest weapon: his good looks and polite personality. In the case of the older men of the town, this man impressed and confused them. The boy worked hard in any job that was given to him, but avoided casual conversation. The older women also had an opinion of him, he was good looking and polite enough, but was too secretive to actually be taken seriously.

Of all the groups of people living in town, the older women had their experience with men, and could only deduce one thing about the boy. He was taken. He had someone he was protecting, for if he didn't, he wouldn't have been searching so diligently for a job and working just as hard in the work he was able to find. At the boy's age, men were still bouncing back and forth between fun and responsibility, but for some reason, this boy was different. This young man had a purpose and he wasn't letting anything get in the way.

Nothing. Women. Liquor. Power. All he seemed to want was work, money, and food.

And suddenly… after the young man had been there for more or less six months, he was in the town clinic, pacing back and forth, muttering words in a language, not many of the townspeople could recognize or even understand.

The young man had been in the clinic since 8:30 in the morning. He had been pacing for nearly six hours, give or take the few minutes he spent sitting with his hands on his knees that would not stop fidgeting. It was obvious he was uncomfortable and impatient for his hands flew through his red hair, which was cut and styled in a very interesting way not found anywhere in Europe. He continued to mumble his words in his foreign language only stopping to bite his knuckles on occasion.

Outside the clinic, the gossip and rumors were growing… in the right direction. The reason behind his workaholic nature seemed to be because of a girl he cared about very much. His lack of interest in fun such as drink and women had been due to the female on his mind, who turned out to be expecting a child. Said girl was now in labor, which explained why the boy was still there after nearly six hours.

Now the gossip was being fueled by negative rumors due to the fact the boy was not in the room with his laboring lover. He had been placed outside in the waiting room and was denied entry whenever he asked the secretary in his accented French. The only reason behind this denial was due to the fact that the boy and his female companion were not married. Along with this, because he spoke a completely different language and so did the girl who was about to give birth, the only explanation behind the boy being forced to wait outside in the waiting room was that this young man and his 'girlfriend' had run off somewhere from a foreign country to hide an accidental pregnancy. In such a small town, such gossip spread like wildfire and the idea of this young man who worked so hard everyday for his pregnant partner but was denied the right to witness his child's birth was the story of the year.

Information continued to spread. The boy's name was not French, it was Japanese, Hitachiin or something like that. His 'girlfriend's' last name was also foreign and different from the man's. According to the rumors, her name was Ohtori- Del Rosario Ohtori to be exact. The two were expecting their first child, but due to customs, Hitachiin wasn't allowed to be in the room unless he and Ms. Ohtori were married. That was why the man still paced and he continued to pace for another two hours.

The day was February thirteenth, the day before Valentine's Day. Instead of spending his time looking for a present for the love of his life, Kaoru Hitachiin was stuck in the waiting room pacing. He didn't want to leave, he didn't want to just sit there, but no one was listening to him when he tried to see Maria.

By request, and with help on Tamaki's part, Maria had been given a private physician who came by the house frequently to check on the progress of the young woman's pregnancy. Maria had fallen into labor four days late, but when Kaoru tried to call the private doctor, the man seemed unable to be contacted. Without thinking, the Hitachiin took Maria to the nearest clinic from their home, and since arriving hadn't seen the girl since.

"_Mademoiselle, is there any chance that I can see Maria now, please?"_ Kaoru queried in French for the umpteenth time that day. _"I beg of you. I know my relationship with her isn't necessarily legal... but-"_

The woman, who was the secretary of the clinic shook her head without even looking up. _"I'm sorry, but you are not authorized to be in there."_

After asking for the umpteenth time, Kaoru restrained his anger for the umpteenth time. He couldn't help but narrow his eyes at the woman behind the desk in the waiting room before turning his back on her and pacing once again. With a hiss, he began to curse in Japanese, wondering what he could have possibly done wrong to have been forced to leave Maria alone at the worst of times. He had promised to be by her side no matter what, but things weren't turning out the way anyone had planned.

Overall, Kaoru was terrified. He was afraid as to why the private doctor had not answered his phone, he was afraid for how Maria was taking the pain of bringing children into the world, and he was afraid that he was going to snap before any of this was over. He wanted to see Maria. It had been more than eight hours. There had to be some progress.

Abruptly Kaoru froze, his hands about to run through his hair in frustration. Something new and foreign had sounded out from within the depths of the small clinic. It echoed into the waiting room over the ticking of the wall clock on one side of the room and the television with bad reception that buzzed on the opposite side. Kaoru stopped all his actions, even halting his breath to listen. Eyes widening in recognition of the new tone, he spun around and rushed to the receptionist again.

His ears weren't deceiving him. He had heard a baby crying.

"_Mademoiselle_, _Mademoiselle_." Kaoru did his best to control the excitement that filled him. _"You heard it didn't you? Oh, you must have heard it! The baby. Maria's had her baby. Can I go in now, please?"_

He was smiling, he was disoriented, he was relieved. Kaoru bit his bottom lip the joy already getting to his head. At the moment, he didn't care if the child hadn't been his, all he did care about was that the wait was over and he could see Maria again. He wanted to yell. He wanted to jump around. He even wanted to cry. So many emotions came crashing into the poor Hitachiin he was left confused with only two thoughts in mind: See Maria, see the baby.

The secretary looked into the young man's handsome face. Though she had seen him many times before at the market or at a number of different jobs, this was first time she had seen him smiling. For a moment she felt a bit of compassion for the foreigner and with a sigh, she stood up and before strolling into the rest of the clinic behind her, she answered. _"We will see. Excuse me."_

This time, Kaoru didn't pace. The crying had died down, but it didn't stop the rapid beating of his heart. Kaoru looked around impatiently. What was taking the woman so long? He wanted to see Maria.

The woman did not come back after a minute or so, and Kaoru did his best to wait. For a few seconds he dared to call Tamaki long distance, just remembering the blonde's words about calling him when the Maria's baby was born. Tamaki did not pick up so Kaoru left the blonde a quick text, "The baby's here."

With these three words, the secretary entered the waiting room again. A gentle smile lit her features as she stated, _"Don't worry, Ms. Ohtori will be fine. The doctor is stopping a slight hemorrhage, but everything is going well." _

Aside from the comforting words, Kaoru couldn't help but feel fearful for a moment at the word 'hemorrhage'. Silently, he prayed that the doctor would stop the bleeding quickly. Suddenly the secretary spoke again,_ "Would you like to see them?"_

When the receptionist said the word 'them', Kaoru's mind swiftly fell on Maria and the baby. For a moment, he wondered whether it was reasonable to see the young mother while the doctor was working on stopping internal bleeding, but eight hours had made the Hitachiin impatient and he nodded his head sheepishly. The receptionist continued to smile and left the room once more, leaving Kaoru to bite his knuckles in thought. He was still nervous out of anticipation. What would the child look like? Who would she or he resemble? If the infant looked like Hikaru, Kaoru might as well just go crazy. If the infant looked like Maria, Kaoru wouldn't complain. Turning his back towards the door the secretary had just entered, Kaoru ran his hands through his hair. He had suffered eight hours of nerves and could feel the ten years of life that had been used up by this long period of stress. He suddenly felt frustrated thinking about the baby. He had just experienced the moment all expectant fathers were prone to experience in the end of a nine month wait… but the ironic thing here was that he wasn't the father.

The Hitachiin straightened and shook his head, as if he could get such negative thoughts out of his mind. "Who cares?" He muttered in Japanese to himself. "Who cares who his or her father is? I'm here aren't I? I love Maria so I can love her children just the same. It's not very different from marrying a divorced woman with a couple kids. Damn it, what am I thinking?" The guilt and the regret were coming back, making him dread his thoughts that were trying to make this moment worthwhile. He shook his head again and growled into his hands.

"_Monsieur Hitachiin."_ Said man looked up rapidly and spun around. Once his eyes registered what he saw before him, he pulled back in surprise.

"What!?" He was still speaking in Japanese, but at the moment he didn't realize it. In the woman's arms were not just one but two small bundles of joy. Each baby was wrapped in an identical light blue blanket, but what made them different was the fact that one bundle was covered in yellow ducklings and the other was covered in white lambs. Kaoru stared at the bundles for a long moment, his mouth agape. He was speechless and was in too much shock to move towards them. The woman smiled and strolled over to the new 'father'.

Kaoru remained mute, his eyes flying over the twins trying to register what had just happened. Before he could do anything, the lady was placing the babies in his arms. Seconds came and went in silence, as the young man stood cautiously not knowing what to do. He looked at the infants he held in shock, staring at a pair of identical twins, both with thick black hair like their mother. After what seemed to be several minutes, his mind finally calmed itself. Still watching Maria's sons, the edges of his lips lifted and…

Kaoru smiled.

"Well… one of you wasn't enough, huh?" The Hitachiin found himself muttering. "I'm sorry to say… the twin thing's been taken on your father's side… but that's ok." He chuckled and slowly realized his eyes had filled with tears.

"_Your sons look very much like you."_ Though the woman had meant her words to be a compliment, Kaoru felt his body stiffen.

Glancing up at the receptionist, Kaoru gently changed the subject questioning, _"Has their mother seen them yet?"_

The woman shook her head, _"They were removed right after the birth to the pediatrician; twins don't normally come four days late. The doctor still had to stop their mother's bleeding."_

"_Oh, I see. When… can we see her?"_ The receptionist found the father frowning in reply.

"_I'm not quite sure. I will check for you, Sir."_ With this, the female left the room for the third time.

While she was gone, Kaoru sat down and continued to look at the new Hitachiin twins in silence. He wanted to talk to Maria and tell her how much he was so proud of her. She had been so strong to bring two babies into the world instead of just one. Alone with the twins, the Hitachiin carefully balanced both babies on one arm and on his lap, and ran his hand gently over their foreheads. The infants felt warm under his touch and moved ever so slightly in reaction to the grip. Even then, the twenty year old was still trying to wrap his mind around it. Maria was a mother… he was… well… this meant he was their father… in some respects.

Maybe what made it so hard was as the man gazed at the twins silently, his mind was trying to tell him one thing while his chest was telling him another. Within his chest, he could feel emotion swelling up from his core making his face feel hot and his head light. For some reason his chest was constricting and he wanted to cry and laugh all at once. Yet aside from the emotion, aside from the urge to laugh and cry, his mind was filled with dreadful thoughts that would not go away. The boys looked more like their mother. The boys had their mother's hair. The boys had their mother's lips. But…

One of the babies suddenly opened his eyes. The little one blinked and frowned but did not react. His gaze fell on his 'Papa' and would not break away.

Kaoru returned the look seeing, to his mind's misfortune, gold.

The boys had their father's eyes.

The Hitachiin bit his bottom lip before sighing. Wasn't this day supposed to be a happy occasion? He was supposed to be celebrating the birth of the twin boys but his mind kept bringing up the other aspects of the situation. The twins did not move or cry, but instead stared or slept silently. After what seemed to be five minutes of trying to clear his mind, the young man exhaled through gritted teeth and forced any further contemplation far into the recesses of his brain. As if to officially place his thoughts there temporarily, he came to grin before kissing the two infants softly on the forehead. He found himself whispering, "You two are going to be quite a handful. Two of you against your mother and I… I hope neither of you decide to be as troublesome as we were before you." Kaoru chuckled, realizing how easy it was to feel so much happier again merely by looking at the boys. "Your mother and I will never… never stop loving you."

For another ten minutes or so the receptionist returned accompanied by what looked like the clinic's nurse. The redhead glanced up expectantly, but the nurse spoke first, _"Monsieur, we will need to take your sons for a moment."_ Leaning over, the nurse touched the two and continued, _"We want to make sure these little ones stay warm."_

Though the Hitachiin didn't feel like doing as the nurse had called for, he obliged and handed the boys to the nurse before she walked away into the back room. The receptionist was left behind, but her next words brought joy to the young man. _"Monsieur, you may come with me to see your partner now."_

Kaoru was on his feet in a second, the smile on his face growing wider. He had so much to say, so many things to express to the girl he loved that he couldn't wait to see Maria. Leading the way, the receptionist added, _"She's a little tired, but the doctors say that the bleeding has stopped and she will be fine with some rest. I will admit… she was very strong to bring two babies into the world."_

"_Yeah she was."_ Kaoru replied, distantly thinking about the woman he was about to see. _"Thank goodness everything turned out well."_

The receptionist looked back at the father who followed her into the clinic. The smile that brightened his handsome features was of true elation and she was happy to have been the person to bring him good news about his young lover and his children. Bringing him to one of the few rooms in the clinic, she slowly opened the door and revealed the new mother lying in a lone bed in the middle of the room.

There was a second's hesitation as Kaoru's eyes fell on Maria's still form, which was connected to a palpitation monitor. He couldn't help but swallow a lump in his throat before entering the Ohtori's room. Quickly forgetting the receptionist, Kaoru took a small stool that stood in the corner of the room and sat down, taking one of Maria's hands in his own. The grin on his face had turned into a worried frown as he gazed at Maria, who did not appear to be conscious. For the first time, Kaoru felt fear for another person's life other than his twin's, who –at the moment- was completely oblivious of what was happening on the other side of the world. Aside from this, Kaoru didn't care. He found himself praying that Maria would wake up and put his mind at ease.

And as if to answer his prayers, the nineteen year old mother of twins awoke, her black eyes coming in and out of focus. Gaze traveling all over the room until finding Kaoru, who held her hand, Maria's first action was a smile before speaking nearly inaudibly. "Hey."

Kaoru felt his eyes fill with tears again, but he rapidly rubbed them away and laughed lightly. "Hey. Look at you."

"Look at you." Maria repeated weakly before giving Kaoru's hand a gentle squeeze. "You're tearing up… Heh… I didn't know you'd be this emotional."

The redhead shrugged, "I think we've got this mixed up. Aren't you the one who's supposed to be suffering from the careening roller coaster of instable hormones?"

It seemed that Maria had not just given birth to twins for the two had easily fallen into a casual conversation, already joking aside from how weak Maria felt. The Ohtori didn't seem to mind, as she kept her eyes on the Hitachiin and her lips in a constant grin. "Well… You're not the one… who just gave birth to twins… maybe your feeling the things… my body's too weak to feel."

"Tired?" Kaoru reacted protectively.

With a faint giggle Maria replied, "A little." Her free hand moved slowly to her head and she rubbed it slowly. "My… head… hurts… but this pain- it's not as bad… as earlier."

Her partner looked away sadly for a moment but returned his gaze, "I'm sorry I couldn't be with you during the birth. I did my best… but no matter how much mischief I unleashed they wouldn't let me see you. They even threatened to kick me out."

Maria continued to giggle, " 'Unleashed', huh? Kaoru… it's ok… What's important … is that you're here… with me… in the end…" For a moment, the young woman's eyes tiredly fell closed, but they opened once more. "No matter… what happened… in the past…"

"I'll always be with you." Kaoru finished before the topic could be brought up. His chest constricted as he said this and he wanted to cry again. The young man moved forward in his seat and gave the woman a gentle kiss on the lips. Maria sighed happily in return. "I… don't care what happened before. We'll raise the twins together. I know you'll be an amazing mother."

A moment came and went, but it took a second for Maria to react to his statement. Her free hand was rubbing her head again, yet she was still smiling. "Twins… two precious babies…"

"Two adorable baby boys. They look like you, but they do have the Hitachiin eyes." Kaoru patted Maria's hand with his own, "It's so ironic… but thinking about it, I know I have so many lessons to teach them. They're so beautiful. They are so… remarkable… I mean… I never thought I could feel this way. I thought that maybe- maybe I would never… Maria?"

The girl's grip had loosened in Kaoru's hold, yet her other arm was still running over her forehead. Standing, Kaoru reached down to touch the Ohtori's forehead with his free hand. Her temperature seemed normal, maybe a little cooler than usual, but nothing seemed to be wrong. Maria's face said differently as the remaining color in her cheeks was draining from her face. "Hey, are you alright?"

"Kaoru…" For some reason Maria's gaze had fallen distant.

Eyes widening, Kaoru shook his head. "Maria? Wait hold on... something's wrong. I'll get the doctor." Kaoru tried to turn, but Maria held on to his arm in earnest. His troubled stare met her weak one.

"Please… don't regret… this. Trust me…" Kaoru felt his heart skip a beat when Maria's expression suddenly contorted with discomfort, her eyes narrowing and her hold on her skull tightening, "Y-You'll… be a great… a great father… I've… never doubted that."

"Maria…" Shaking his head, Kaoru pulled gently from Maria's grip. "We- We'll be good parents- the two of us... We'll raise them together… Maria?"

"My head… it hurts…" Before the Hitachiin could fully pull from the Ohtori's hold, the girl's grip loosened completely, her hand abruptly falling out of Kaoru's palm, her eyes closing shut, and her head rolling onto its side.

Maybe he had stood there only a millisecond… or maybe it had been a few seconds while Kaoru's mind had just registered what had happened. The monitor on the other side of the bed was still sounding off Maria's heartbeat, rhythm inconsistent and slow. Within these few seconds, he didn't realize he was speaking, "Maria… Maria!?"

Maria's heart was still beating… but she wasn't waking up.

Spinning around, Kaoru didn't feel his feet rushing his form out of the room. He didn't feel his voice calling out loudly- desperately in all the languages that came to his mind, Japanese, French, English, Spanish. "Help! Someone- anyone! Help!!" He didn't see the nurse who was running his direction. He didn't hear was she was saying. His words just came flying out, "Maria. Oh my God! She's not waking up. Help her… Help her!!"

The few nurses and doctors who worked at the clinic were pushing passed him now. They were rushing into Maria's room, orders being yelled out and people hurrying here and there. He was left to stand at the other end of the hall, gazing into Maria's room as the doctors and nurses were trying their best find out what was wrong. After a few minutes, the receptionist had taken his arm and was pulling him in direction of the exit. Instinctively, he shook his head, "No! No! No! Wait… I can't- Maria, Maria!!"

Hours came and went, but Kaoru was kept outside once more, pacing and praying.

The next time he heard a voice, it was from the middle-aged doctor who was shaking his head as he spoke. _"Hitachiin… I… I am sorry to say…"_

The young man did not hear those last words. He merely stared at the man in front of him before moving by him into the clinic aside from the calls from the receptionist and nurses he passed by. When he made it to Maria's doorway, he stopped, gazing at Maria's lifeless form.

The Nurses avoided his eyes as they left the room. One wheeled out the defibrillator that had failed to return Maria's life to her. For the longest time, Kaoru shook his head, his lips parting into words of denial.

The Hitachiin backed into the opposite wall and slid down into the fetal position. Not fully aware of what he was doing, he placed his face in his arms and sat in his place, continuing to mutter.

Everything. Everything had been taken away from him. No matter what he did, he kept losing those closest to him.

And yet, even with such ideas swimming through his chaotic mind, the tears did not fall.

Who knows how long the poor boy had remained in the hallway of the small hospital mourning over the loss of the mother of his children. The doctor ordered that the boy not be disturbed, but because time did not stop –even for the Hitachiin-, eventually the man had to bring the boy back to reality.

Kaoru did not fight. He did not cry. He did not yell or scream. The staff of the clinic were surprised to see the young man's eyes dry, but darkened by the sorrow that had not been expressed. The young man politely asked to see his 'sons'- to hold them and luckily, this time, no one tried to stop him.

The day had been February thirteen when Kohaku and Keisuke were born. After eight hours of labor, their mother, Maria Angelina Del Rosario Ohtori, gave birth to them in a little town nestled in the midst of rural France.

The day had been February thirteen when their mother died. Maria Angelina Del Rosario Ohtori, the woman Kaoru had loved, passed away due to a blood clot that had ceased all blood flow to the brain.

Four years later, February thirteen has come again… and though it brings both joy and sorrow, life continues on for Kohaku and Keisuke, and their 'father', Kaoru.

**********

It was the morning of the twins' birthday when Kaoru came to wake up tears rolling down the sides of his face and onto his pillow. Since the night before, the twenty-four year old had been finding himself easily moved by nearly anything, somewhat similar to someone with instable emotions. The day was February thirteen, four years following Kohaku and Keisuke's birth and Maria's death, and for the fourth time in a row, Kaoru had relived the last moment he had spent with Maria that very night.

In truth, Kaoru had expected it. He knew the memory was going to unearth itself and expected to wake up in cold sweat nearly in tears. He had even dared to stay awake all night, but due to five days of busy work and emotional strife, even his body couldn't take anymore sleepless nights and he had found himself collapsing onto his pillow the evening before the twins' special day. Now, what surprised him as he awoke were the damp spots at the sides of his face, where tears had fallen as he dreamed once more. The father sat up slowly and rubbed his face with his palms drying the wet trails the tears had been taking. Why was today different? Why cry when the passed three years he rarely found himself in tears?

Kaoru sighed and found his voice caught in his throat. His head was aching and he felt dizzy, which was unfortunate for the Hitachiin who would have to wrestle with a pair of excited four year olds for the entire day. His hands still against his face Kaoru tried his best to regain his composure, yet no matter what he did his eyes remained wet. A faint growl exited the man's lips before he forced himself out of his bed and onto the floor. Stretching, Kaoru yawned before stumbling out of his room. He wasn't ready to face the day and with Maria's last moments still fresh in his mind, Kaoru wanted some time to think. Kaoru quietly strolled towards the twins' room and peered inside. The alarm clock at one end of their room brightly expressed that it was half passed seven, around the time everyone should have started waking up for such a big day.

Luckily for him, Kohaku and Keisuke were still in a deep slumber, all thanks to Tamaki keeping them up late into the night playing commoner's games while Haruhi had spent time with Kaoru himself. Whatever Tamaki had done to tire the boys out had worked and even as Kaoru strolled into the boys' room, neither stirred. Taking advantage of the moment, the Hitachiin crawled onto his sons' bed and settled himself in the small space between the birthday celebrants. Once again, Kohaku had turned himself upside down in his sleep and Kaoru picked the boy up and placed him in the correct position. Keisuke had already snuggled closer to Kaoru's body, only aware of the warmth that came from the young man. Smiling endearingly, Kaoru wrapped his arms around the two boys as the pair continued to sleep.

"You two…" Kaoru muttered amused. He shook his head and then closed his eyes, running his hands over the boys' heads before falling into a semi-conscious state, his mind on his thoughts while his body had returned to rest.

Nearly an hour later, Kaoru's eyes flew open at the sound of shuffling feet right outside the room. After his eyes were able to refocus, he found himself looking at his houseguest staring from behind the door to the room. Once she realized he was awake she grinned gently before slipping into the room silently. "Good Morning." Haruhi greeted in an audible whisper.

"Morning." Kaoru replied. "Slept well?"

"Shouldn't that be my line?" Haruhi returned, "Yesterday was pretty tiring for you."

Kaoru couldn't help but chuckle at her statement. "Now, now…" He felt his eyes ready to overflow again. "I don't know what you did to me Haruhi, but ever since yesterday I've been finding myself constantly at the verge of tears. Heck, I've always been the talented one who was able to bring fake tears to my eyes in high school, but it's never been like this."

The woman's smile faltered, "I apologize. I didn't expect-"

"It's ok… I actually feel like a weight has been lifted. It still hurts but it is good to feel this kind of pain." Kaoru explained and held the twins at his sides closer.

Haruhi watched him as he did this and finally nodded. "So… what are you doing?" She queried innocently.

The Hitachiin kept grinning and spoke a little louder, "Oh nothing really, just enjoying the quiet a little while longer. I need to warn you, none of us will be getting any rest until these two go to bed tonight." Suddenly he brought the two boys deeper into his hold, their faces slamming into his sides uncomfortably. There came a pair of groans in return as Kohaku and Keisuke were roughly brought into the world of the conscious. "Haruhi, I doubt that you've seen these two at their worst, but they're nothing close to Hikaru and I… Boys, Hijos, it's time to wake up."

It shocked both the Fujioka and Hitachiin when the younger of the two mumbled, "But I'm still sleepy…"

Coming closer towards the bed, Haruhi did her best to help, "Keisuke… Kohaku… you really should wake up. Don't you know what day it is?"

Kohaku yawned and was the first to open his sleep-ridden eyes, "…It's…" There was second of silence as the thoughts began to register. Suddenly out of nowhere, the older twin jumped up, his eyes wide with realization. Kaoru pulled back calmly as the four year old began to yell, "IT'S OUR BIRTHDAY!! PAPA, IT'S OUR BIRTHDAY!!"

As the adults laughed in reply to this sudden wake up call, Kohaku crawled over his father's lap to Keisuke's side of the bed. Without empathy towards his sleeping brother, Kohaku hopped on top of Keisuke calling, "KEI, KEI, WAKE UP!! IT'S OUR BIRTHDAY!!! OUR BIRTHDAY!! YOU GOT TO WAKE UP NOW!!! WAKE UP WAKE UP!"

"Owwwww." Was the only reaction Keisuke gave before turning his head into Kaoru's body in an attempt to overlook his brother's yells. "Kohaku, I'm sleeping."

"BUT YOU NEED TO WAKE UP NOW KEI!! IT'S TIME TO WAKE UP; WE HAVE OUR BIRTHDAY PARTY AT KYOUYA-OJI-SAN'S HOUSE!!" Kohaku climbed further on top of his twin, straddling the poor Keisuke who remained slightly submerged in the folds of his father's nightshirt. Kohaku leaned over and blew into his brother's ear before shouting into it. "OY KEISUKE!!!!!!!"

With this harsh awakening, Kaoru grabbed the older twin and pulled Kohaku off Keisuke, clicking his tongue. "Kohaku, that's rude. You don't do that, hijo."

Kohaku struggled against his father's grip, "But Papa, Kei isn't waking up!! He has to wake up now or he won't be able to go to the party." Ignoring Kaoru's strong hold, Kohaku spoke out loudly again, "KEEEEIIIISUKE!!! WE'RE FOUR YEARS OLD NOW!!! WAKE UP!!!"

This time, Keisuke cried out, "Stop it… Papa… Kohaku's being mean…"

"But Keisuke, your brother wants to spend his time with you on your birthday." Kaoru replied. He gazed up at Haruhi who observed quietly. The Hitachiin motioned her closer and spoke, "Haruhi would you like to try and wake this little one up. It seems Kohaku and I aren't making any progress."

Haruhi shrugged, "Well, I don't know if I'll be able to help." She didn't understand why the man insisted that she try to wake his son up, but hesitantly, Haruhi did as she was told. Lowering herself so that she was eye level with the stubborn boy she gently nudged Keisuke, "Hey little guy, today's a big day. Let's get up and have some fun."

Keisuke shook his head and turned away. Haruhi kept nudging him, "Come on Keisuke. Think about it. You'll be getting presents and cake and you'll get to see all your friends…" No matter how much she cooed, Keisuke did not get up, resisting all attempts to get him out of bed. Glancing up, Haruhi glared at Kaoru who was chuckling uncontrollably for some reason. He avoided her gaze and turned to holding Kohaku back who was trying to climb onto his brother again to help his Aunt wake the child up. With a sigh, Haruhi got serious, slightly irked by the way Kaoru was laughing to himself. "Keisuke… Think about all the fun you will be having. Think of the cake-"

Abruptly the small boy moved his head in her direction and gave Haruhi the darkest glare imaginable, eyes no longer gold, but black(Y/M: OMG Keisuke's a vampire! Sorry, Twilight fans!) from lack of sleep (Y/M: Oh, never mind. :P). Instead of Keisuke's normal adorable voice, the child spoke with a harsh hiss, "I… don't like cake…!"

The sudden change in the boy's demeanor made Haruhi pull back and nearly fall off the bed in surprise. Her eyes wide with shock she found herself squeaking, "W-What in the world?" The glare the boy had just give her had looked very much like the glare of a Shadow King she knew, especially after being woken up at an undesirable time. The boy was small and cute, which gave his scowl nearly double the power and also related him to the small blonde Lolita whom she also was companions with.

In return, Kaoru exploded into a fit of laughter. He overlooked the fact that the woman beside him who had failed to wake up the second twin was staring at him incredulously. With a finishing chuckle, Kaoru wiped some stray tears from his eyes as if it had all been some funny joke. "Look…Look at that face of yours. Hahahaha!" The Hitachiin couldn't help but chuckle again. "You really… you really…"

"I what!?" Haruhi questioned. "Did you see that glare he gave me? I didn't do anything!"

"No… no… I know you didn't…. Hahaha…. I mean… Keisuke… Hahaha… wake up for Papa now… hahaha! My Goodness, Haruhi that's priceless." Kaoru just couldn't stop laughing which made Haruhi feel like she had fallen for some lousy prank. She narrowed her eyes and Kaoru beamed back, lifting Keisuke off the bed and nonchalantly placing the boy onto the floor. Once Keisuke was standing safely on one side of the bed, Kaoru patted the twin on the backside gently in direction of the bathroom while saying, "Kei go wash your face in the bathroom. Kohaku make sure your brother makes it there."

The older twin nodded and slipped off his mattress as well. He took his twin's hand and half-led half-dragged a grumpy Keisuke to said washroom. Their father finally elaborated on his sudden fit of giggles. "I'm so sorry, Haruhi. I… just. Well let's just say, Keisuke isn't a morning person…" Kaoru's look fell distant as he recalled something as he spoke, "…Like his mother and his Kyouya-Oji-san. Looks like not even you can interrupt an Ohtori's slumber without being snapped at. I was so sure that you would have been able to get Keisuke up, but I guess I was wrong."

Haruhi frowned, "That was low Kaoru. You should have told me, Keisuke was like that. I didn't know a four year old could give a person such a look. He looked like he was going to kill me. Gosh, he looked just like Kyouya!"

"Kyouya… and Maria." Kaoru explained, jumping off the bed. Haruhi opened her mouth to say something, but realized how suddenly open the twenty-four year old Hitachiin was acting. His persona had changed dramatically as if a physical weight had really been lifted from his shoulders. The young man kept on, speaking about the deceased woman quite calmly, "You should have seen her, Haruhi. I don't know who was worse, Maria or Kyouya in the morning. There was this one time, when Maria was about five months pregnant with the boys. Oh my God, she was having the worst mood swings. When I tried to wake her up, I think she scared fifteen years from my lifespan. Ah, the Ohtori morning demons."

At this last statement, there was a small scream from outside the room in direction of the bathroom. The two adults gave each other a glance before exiting the room and heading for the source of the scream. On the way there, another scream accompanied the first before Kaoru opened the bathroom door revealing the pair of Hitachiin twins soaking wet. Puddles of water lay sporadically in the large bathroom the boys stood in. Each twin held a cup in their hands, both in the position of spilling water on the other. Kaoru sighed without reaction and placed his hands on his hips disapprovingly. Before the father could speak, his sons were already going down the line of excuses.

The Morning Demon, Keisuke was wide awake by now and he pointed at his brother, "Papa, Haku spilled water on me!"

Kohaku scowled in his twin's direction, "Hey I was trying to wake you up!" He pointed at Keisuke and added, "But Papa, he spilled water on me too."

Rolling his eyes, Kaoru ignored these accusations and walked into the room carefully. He avoided the puddles of water from an apparent water fight that had gone on for a few seconds before he had appeared. The young man overlooked what either child was saying, grabbing both their pajama tops and pulling them off. He only shook his head, "Enough of that. You two needed to take a bath before the party anyway. Take your clothes off."

"But Papa!" Both boys called out unanimously.

"Kohaku, Keisuke the tub, now. You have a long day." Kaoru ended further discussion with the order. A grin still lit his face, but the boys still did as they were told, removing their pajamas before getting into the bath tub at the end of the room.

The Hitachiin rubbed the back of his neck and piled the shed clothes into the corner of the bathroom to be picked up later. He turned to look at the brunette who had followed him. He gave her an indifferent shrug and spoke, "I'm sorry again Haruhi, but I told you, we're- I'm not going to be resting until these two finally go to bed tonight." Pausing, Kaoru turned the taps of the tub, squirted a bit of bubble bath into the water, and began to fill the tub. He continued, "You can go downstairs and see to it that Rebekah's awake. She still has to finish the cake before we leave for Kyouya's."

Haruhi took a moment to stare at the redhead before nodding. "You got it." With this, she left and did as she was told.

Haruhi's POV

His words echoed within my mind, "I don't know what you did to me Haruhi, but ever since yesterday I've been finding myself constantly at the verge of tears. Heck, I've always been talented at bringing fake tears to my eyes since in high school, but it's never been like this." Thinking about it, I have to admit, not even I knew the answer to his inquiry. What did I do to him?

After I found the younger Hitachiin twin at the airport the other day, I spent much of the night listening and talking to Kaoru in a way, I guess, none of the male ex-hosts could. I might have been a little less emotional than most girls, but I was still slightly more empathetic than the average man… excluding Tamaki of course. Yesterday, Kaoru seemed to have reached the end of his emotional rope. He, like most guys, kept what he felt and thought hidden from others, but knowing his predicament, I don't think that it would have been very healthy for him to have continued on like he did. A single father, a 'CEO' of sorts, and a disowned son, Kaoru had to face it one day, he really wasn't superman.

Kaoru didn't tell me enough about his situation to be fully enlightened, but I could see how he seemed to hate every word that exited his mouth as he cried. He was drilling a hole deep into his heart trying his best to forget the technicalities of his problem and yet bring the boys closer to him. He just wouldn't let it go that he was the not the father of Keisuke and Kohaku, no matter how many times the two called him Papa, Otou-san, and **Daddy**. I didn't try to make him realize that when I found him at the airport, but the more he spoke from the heart, the more I wanted to tell him off for not recognizing his own desires.

And yet… strangely, though I had not given him any advice whatsoever, he had changed. Kaoru Hitachiin had changed just enough for me to notice. Maybe it was because I was letting him open up without questioning him. Maybe he had just wanted someone to understand without truly understanding his feelings, like the day Tamaki and I had overheard him and Kyouya on the speakerphone, when Kyouya was asking if Kaoru regretted his decisions. Whatever had happened, Kaoru had lowered the defenses he had raised when I had first arrived. He wasn't ready to let everything go just yet, but he was willing to express himself enough to make my job in helping a whole lot easier.

Now, it was Kohaku and Keisuke's birthday and to my surprise (or not), Kaoru was acting just as open and carefree as ever. He joined Rebekah and I downstairs soon after giving the boys a bath and spoke to us kindly and calmly about preparing this and organizing that. The stressed and overworked Kaoru was gone, and the father figure was back, making sure that his sons' special day was perfect. The decorations were already being set up at Kyouya's home and the final things that had to be prepared were the food and birthday celebrants. Within a few productive hours we were finished with the needed arrangements and were jumping into Kaoru's Mini Cooper. As we drove to our destination, I found myself asking, "Kaoru, why did you plan to have the party at Kyouya's house?"

I was sitting shotgun and glanced to my right at Kaoru, whose eyes remained on the road as his hands held tightly to the steering wheel. He sent a quick look in my direction before answering, "It wasn't my idea, Kyouya was the one who offered. The plans were to have the party at our house, Kyouya's, or Tamaki's. The boys were the ones who chose. Kohaku wanted it at Tamaki's house, Keisuke wanted it at Kyouya's estate, so our house fell out of the question."

Abruptly said twins added, "We flipped a coin!"

Rebekah, who had been placed at the center of the backseat between the two boys giggled, before nodding. I looked back to watch them, noticing Kaoru taking a second to glance at the three squished in the seat through the rearview mirror. "They flipped the coin 27 times." The Maid explained.

Kaoru began to chuckle as well, recalling the event, "Ah yes, it had to be fair, Rebekah. Is that right, boys?"

I stared at the twins who each nodded enthusiastically. Each boy was dressed in identical purple turtlenecks, perfect for a romp in the chilly February weather, accompanied by a pair of deep blue denim jeans and twin pairs of green and purple Converse. The only difference between the two, other than the part in their hair, was that Kohaku had Tortuga wrapped around his small shoulders, the boa constrictor peacefully slithering from one side of his shoulders to the other. Said twin with the reptile gracing his shoulders spoke, "This year we'll have our birthday party at Kyouya-Oji-san's."

His brother was quick to follow, "And next year, when we turn five, we'll have our birthday at Tama-Oji-san's."

Their father came to stop at the red light and looked at me elaborating, "Tamaki already has it all planned out." The Hitachiin shook his head bemused and amused all at once before continuing, "Keeps saying something about creating a mini animal kingdom in his backyard for the boys and having a birthday safari, matching safari cosplay and everything. I now understand why you were so irked by the actions of the rich."

The mental image made me laugh in return. I wouldn't have been surprised if Tamaki did decide to bring elephants and zebras to his home just for the twins' birthday. The idea of safari outfits continued to humor me as Kaoru drove on, muttering about how 'unnerving it would be to see Kohakua and Keisuke in those atrocious Safari costumes.'

"Well does Kyouya have any better plans than that?" I queried through my giggles.

"Oh, you know Kyouya wouldn't be found dead with some crazy attraction in his home. I believe it may just be a simple get together, nothing more." Kaoru took a turn and we began driving into a neighborhood of clearly wealthy homes. "The boys don't get to see other children often due to the fact that their Oji-sans and Oba-sans are busy with their businesses and the like. What's more, they aren't old enough to go to preschool so I can't send them anywhere just yet. For their birthday I tried to invite everyone from high school I'm still in contact with- KOHAKU, drop that present right now!"

I nearly jumped up to the car roof when Kaoru suddenly snapped, his eyes on the rearview mirror watching the four year old release one of his birthday gifts wrapped in bright red wrapping paper. Rebekah and Keisuke giggled just a guiltily, giving the one who was caught a sheepish look before glancing away. Kaoru gave a sigh and shook his head, "You two will be getting more gifts soon, I don't want you to be opening the presents I have for you until you get the gifts from your guests first."

The houses were beginning to become spread apart, yards became bigger, houses became more elaborate. The wealthy homes were turning into wealthy estates, much larger than Kaoru's own western-styled building. With this, I kept my eyes on the passing scenery doing my best to pinpoint the Ohtori estate from the mansions that came by.

A few moments later, Kyouya's home did appear shining in its silver modern splendor. Only a couple of cars were parked in the round driveway in front of the large home, which meant we were comfortably early. Kaoru drove silently up to the gate and spoke into the gate's speaker. "Kaoru Hitachiin here." There was a pause and the gates slid open for him to drive through. As Kyouya held control over the branches of his company within the Tokyo area, the shadow king still lived in the family home. I didn't quite understand as to why the Ohtoris welcomed Kaoru and the twins, when I was aware Maria had never been on their good sides. All I could imagine was that Kyouya was respected enough by his father to be taken seriously and given permission to have a children's birthday party held on the grounds of the estate.

Rebekah clapped her hands and cheered, "What luck, we have such nice weather today."

I peered out of the window and saw the sky was overcastted and cloudy, but the sun was still shining through, its rays slightly weakened by the cloud cover. I frowned, but quickly realized that for a German like Rebekah, this did seem like good weather for winter.

Kaoru parked and turned around to gaze into the backseat. The father began his lecture, "Now Kohaku Keisuke, Kyouya-Oji-san is being very generous to have allowed us to have your party at his house, but remember we need to be respectful especially when we are greeting your Fuyumi Oba-san and your Ojii-sama."

I looked away from the backseat and stared at the Hitachiin. It still perplexed me that the Ohtori patriarch and sole Ohtori daughter were accepting of the illegitimate children and their father, but I did note the sudden change in the respectful suffixes. Keisuke shyly spoke up, his brother abruptly holding an equally shy demeanor, "Will our other Oji-sans be there too?"

Shaking his head, Kaoru elaborated, "Kyouya-Oji-san will be the only brother there. Your other Oji-sans are on business. Everyone else will be just your ordinary Oji-sans, like Tama-Oij-san and Mori-Oji-san."

The boys nodded. Even at four they felt the somberness of the moment. I didn't question the fact that Kaoru had taught the boys to act according to atmosphere, so different from the twins a generation before who complained at random moments of time how bored they were.

After this short order, Kaoru exited the car. I followed suit and watched the boys and Rebekah stumble out into the sunny, but still chilly February day. Before I could realize where Kaoru had gone, he was already at the back of the car, removing the gifts he had for the twins and the food that he had expertly placed in the trunk to avoid spills. Rebekah quickly came to help him and I moved to accompany them both, but was stopped when the pair of birthday boys grabbed each of my hands. "Haruhi-Oba-chan!" The two called out adorably. I smiled down at them.

When I looked up again, I saw two young men dressed in black speaking with Kaoru at the trunk of the car. I couldn't hear what they were saying for a moment, but I did see how Rebekah had her arms crossed showing her evident dislike. I strolled closer to the conversation, pulling the boys with me.

"…Hitachiin-sama, we are here to assist you, sir." One of the men explained respectfully. The trunk had been full of boxes with food, gifts, and extra decorations, plus one large birthday cake, but all of them would have been easily taken into the estate on a few trips by two healthy human beings. The pair of twins holding my hands tightened their grips, helping me realize that like Rebekah, they were not used to having servants of any kind helping them with work. What I had already known was that Rebekah wasn't even much of a maid. She cleaned and did the laundry, yes, but it wasn't unusual for Kaoru and I to help her with the chores. Besides, Kaoru was paying for her high school tuition and other needs, so she wasn't there solely to be the 'maid'.

Rebekah let out a huff of breath, "Oh? Well we got this all handled, guys." She tightened her crossed arms, her muscles flexing through the cloth of her coat. "We don't need any help thanks."

The two men gave each other looks before continuing, "Please, we would like to make it easier for you, as ordered by Ohtori-sama, Sir."

Rebekah stood her ground even stepping forward, "I said we got this handled."

Even Kaoru had become accustomed to work and bowed, "It's alright. You may return to what you were doing. We can take these things in by ourselves, thank you."

"But Sir-"

"You deaf?" The German teen spoke, cracking her knuckles threateningly.

Kaoru turned to Rebekah gently apprehending her, "Rebekah, that's enough. I'll take care of this, thank you."

The maid rolled her eyes and bent down, picking two large boxes onto her shoulders easily and walking towards the boys and I. Kaoru could only gaze at her before moving his gaze in my direction, telling me with his eyes to head to the estate with Rebekah. I did as I was told, taking the boys with me by the hand, knowing full well that Kohaku and Keisuke were looking back at their father as we moved away. The birthday celebrants continued to watch Kaoru reason out with the two strange men who were offering to help out of nowhere until we entered the main building.

Another man, the butler this time, opened the door for us. As he did this, the boys were staring at him closely. Once again, this man offered to help Rebekah with her load, but the proud teen shook her head and stopped him from offering any further. The more the twins seemed to be amazed by what they saw around them the more I saw how Kaoru had raised them. The Hitachiin had brought his sons up in the middle of his world and their mother's. As children, Kohaku and Keisuke did not have to worry about money or the food they were eating, but at the same time, they did not have servants to do everything for them. I remembered Tamaki's words about Kaoru not spoiling the twins, which explained as to why the boys were uncomfortable as we entered.

Within seconds, Kaoru had joined us, followed by the two men who had won the verbal battle outside and were taking the boxes and food inside. Rebekah glared at these men, but kept her mouth shut. Kohaku and Keisuke saw their father come in and released my hands, coming to him as if attracted by an invisible force. He patted each on the head and beamed at them. The five of us waited patiently in the large entryway.

In truth, I had never met any of Kyouya's family members other than his father so I really didn't know what I was waiting for. I knew he had two older brothers and an older sister, but other than that I was even more oblivious than Kohaku and Keisuke. I took up my time waiting by looking around the foyer in interest. Everything was clean, the floors were waxed, and the entire area was covered in modern décor. Even if I hadn't already known that Kyouya lived in such a place, I could swiftly tell. The Shadow King's straight laced, dignified persona was surely expressed by his home.

Much of the floors in Kaoru's home had been wood so the marble tile floor of Kyouya's place caught the twins' interest quickly. The four year old Hitachiin brothers pointed at their reflections in the waxed floor, pulling at their father to look down as well. Kaoru silently obliged and gazed down. Strangely there was an evident question hidden behind his light smile, he was wondering the same thing as I was. Where was Kyouya?

After a few minutes a voice echoed out into the hall. A woman I had never seen before, descended a flight of stairs at one end of the room, greeting us, "Welcome everyone. I apologize for keeping you waiting." There was a sense of poise in each of her steps and looking closely at the woman's face, I could see the traits of the Ohtori in her. Arriving at the ground floor, she gave us a genuinely warm smile, and almost instantly I could sense that Fuyumi Ohtori was very different from her younger brother.

As quickly as she arrived, Kaoru nudged the twins forward. Kohaku and Keisuke, boasting the shyest looks about them, bowed deeply and answered uniformly, "Good Morning, Fuyumi Oba-san. Thank you for having us in your home."

Sadness darkened the woman's face for a millisecond; she shook her and returned to smiling, "Now, now, it's all right. You two don't need to be so somber with me." She came towards us and leaned down to look at the boys in the eyes, "Why don't you give me some happy faces? I hear that it's your birthday today, isn't it?"

Once again Kohaku and Keisuke answered at the same time, "Yes, Fuyumi-Oba-san. We are turning four today."

Because she was much closer, I could see Kyouya's sister a lot more clearly. Especially now that she was standing right beside her nephews, I realized how much of the Ohtori family the boys had inherited in their looks. Their Aunt, like their mother, had wavy, curly locks of black hair, but her body structure was different, taller and slimmer from the image of their mother I had seen. Other than that, the boys were definitely from the Ohtori bloodline, aside from their eyes.

"Well, well, well, I'll have to tell your grandfather just how big you two are getting, now won't I?" Fuyumi spoke playfully. She straightened and flipped her hair out of her face before speaking to the adults and teen in the room. "They are getting very big, Kaoru-san. You are raising them well."

My attention fell on the Hitachiin and I had to bite my tongue from saying something. Kaoru nodded back in acknowledgment, but the rest of his body was shaking indefinitely. He grinned back, "Thank you, Fuyumi-san. Um, forgive me for my asking, but where is your younger brother?"

The Ohtori female clapped her hands trying to lift the atmosphere a bit more, "Oh, Kyouya isn't here at the moment." Kaoru stiffened at these words, but the trembling did not stop. "He's taking care of a quick errand father gave him. He'll be home soon, don't you worry."

I stared at Kaoru trying to guess what was going through his mind. Being at the Ohtori Estate must have been as uncomfortable as speaking with his brother from the way I could feel every ounce of restraint coursing through his form. I allowed myself to shake my head thinking, _Yeah, there goes all my progress._ Kaoru had been open one moment but was suddenly closed within the next. What could I expect from Kohaku and Keisuke's mother's side of the family? "Well, please make yourself at home. Kyouya had the west parlor and grounds reserved for the celebration, so if you'd follow me." Fuyumi continued trying to change topics. She led us to another part of the building while explaining, "You may use anything in our home for the party, though by the looks of it you seem to have everything under control, don't you Kaoru?"

Kaoru merely grunted as a reply but within seconds he gave her a proper answer, "Yes, Fuyumi-san. Thank you once again."

We soon arrived at a large sitting area of sorts. This parlor, which had once held a few large and elegant pieces of furniture, was now full of small tables and chairs, about four chairs per table. The room was surrounded by large clear windows and at one end opened up into a small private ballroom, which for the occasion was filled with a variety of activities for the birthday boys and their guests. It was clear that the Ohtori Estate had not had a child living within its grounds for many years as the area that the party would take up had been arranged unusually to house young children. The ballroom and the west yard, which was made up of an elaborate array of plants would be the areas for the boys and their companions, while much of the rest of the house remained for the adults. I personally felt quite awkward, my mind daring to think that Tamaki's safari idea would have been a better choice, but this was Kyouya and I had never known the Shadow King to be necessarily Child Friendly.

The rooms were all decorated in a variety of purple decorations. The boys, like their twin Uncle and Father before them, had an interesting style that could not be overlooked even at four. For the passed week, I had listened to both twins tell me how purple had somehow become the favorite color of the year, so this purple party was clearly the result of their current tastes. I couldn't help but feel surprised when Kohaku and Keisuke squealed with delight at the sight of their party area, not really noticing how drab the place really was.

Kaoru cleared his throat and the three Hitachiins bowed unanimously, Kaoru accustomed to moving and speaking at the exact same time as someone else. A mix of voices spoke out, "Thank you for doing this for us."

Fuyumi smiled sadly before shaking her head, "Now, Kaoru lighten up a little will you? Make yourself at home, you're family."

Maybe I was the only person who noticed how Kaoru's hands at his sides clamped into fists at the sound of those words. "We… shall do so, Fuyumi-san."

Luckily Rebekah rapidly moved on, "Well, I'm going to start setting up the food and things, Fuyumi-sama." The Ohtori smiled and nodded in the teen's direction before Rebekah walked off into the main parlor with her load. I stifled a giggle when I heard the German roughly say to the other maids and butlers that had come to assist, "Hey guys, go take a break for a couple hours. I'll take care of this."

Soon after she left, I found the woman looking in my direction. I was shocked at the moment and found myself bowing and apologizing. "Oh, sorry, I haven't introduced myself. I'm-"

"Fujioka, Haruhi, am I correct?" I glanced up as Fuyumi finished my introduction. She was beaming and my sudden discomfort quickly went away, "It's perfectly all right, I know all about you."

"You do?"

Kaoru was swift to help, realizing that I was his responsibility, "She is currently living with me until she finds an apartment of her own."

Nodding the Ohtori sister added, "Yes, Kyouya spoke to me about that. It is nice to meet you. My father and brother are always speaking highly of you."

I found myself blushing, "Really? I mean… thanks. It's nice to meet you too, ma'am."

Fuyumi giggled, "Oh, why don't we just speak casually? Will that be all right with you Haruhi-san?"

"That'll be good, Fuyumi-san."

Kyouya's sister was definitely a different person. She was a lot more truthful with her words and actions, and unlike Kyouya, she did not have an ulterior motive for everything she did. Before we could get further acquainted, another member of the house keeping staff had walked silently to Fuyumi's side. The young man spoke softly enough that neither Kaoru nor I could hear him. There was a moment of quiet before Fuyumi returned to us again. She wasn't hiding her thoughts when her smile disappeared, "Kaoru, father would like to see the boys upstairs and greet them a happy birthday."

Kohaku and Keisuke's 'father' didn't react with surprise. Glancing down at the twins, Kaoru nodded and gave a gentle order, "Go with Fuyumi-Oba-san and pay respects to your Ojii-sama."

I could see that the boys were hesitant to oblige, but without answering, they followed their Aunt back into the main foyer and upstairs.

At the same time, Kaoru was heading in the opposite direction, into the parlor where Rebekah was hard at work laying out the food dishes and cake. Before I could say anything to him, he was already busy doing his own share of the decorating and organizing, no interest in talking to me whatsoever.

Minutes came and went. I couldn't help but glance up at the ceiling wondering what the Ohtori patriarch would want. The three of us continued to work together in silence. This time no one from the house keeping staff offered to help to Rebekah's delight. After what seemed to half an hour, within which we had finished laying out all the food and were finishing decorations, the boys had yet to come downstairs. I could feel worry already coursing through my system for some strange reason, which made me realize that what I was feeling must have been ten times worse for the 'father' who waited downstairs. I didn't know if it was appropriate to bring the Ohtoris up especially now as we were all in their main home. Suddenly something happened that used up the last of my control in speaking with Kaoru.

CRASH!

Rebekah and I jumped at our ends of the room when the sound of breaking glass reached our ears. We spun around and found Kaoru kneeling tenderly over the shattered remains of a large serving plate he was bringing over. I gave Rebekah a quick glance and headed in the redhead's direction. "Kaoru, are you ok?"

Kaoru looked up and smiled. "Yeah, I'm fine. My hands slipped, sorry about that." I squatted down to his level and helped him pick up the large pieces of glass. My eyes on the ground, I noticed his hands as they flew over the ground to pick up the glass. They were shaking quite badly.

"Hey, are you sure you're ok? Your hands… their trembling." At my words, he pulled back his hands supporting my suspicions that something was wrong with him. I peered into his face, he was still smiling.

"It's nothing, just slight anxiety. Feeling a little nervous, that's all. They've been gone a long time, you know?" I did not allow his words to kill my worry and I scowled at him. His smile faltered as he leaned back and away from me sheepishly, "You're not going to kill me are you?" He queried almost playfully.

I shook my head, "Don't try to hide it Kaoru. Something's up, you've been shaking since earlier." The lack of reaction on his part continued to strengthen my own assumptions. "What's up?"

I don't know if Kaoru was aware of what he was doing, but as his grin grew and a relaxed chuckle slipped from his lips, Kaoru entwined his fingers and gripped them together hard so as to stop the shaking. "Come now, Haruhi. Let it be. It's nothing really. Over the passed few years I've developed a little anxiety problem that's all." The Hitachiin released his hands and held them out in front of my gaze, "See? No more shaking. Problem solved!"

Anxiety Problem. Were twenty-four year old men (supposedly at their strongest) supposed to be having bouts of anxiety? I found myself staring passed Kaoru's hands and at his beaming face in shock. Nothing. Nothing would have led me to think the younger Hitachiin twin would develop an anxiety problem. I knew he was stressed, but I had never known stress to be so bad as to affect his physical well being also. The passed week flew by into my mind. The few moments I had seen Kaoru leave his office during the week were suddenly explained. The reason why Kyouya had to come and assist the Hitachiin, during the entire week no matter how busy the Ohtori was at his own company, was due to Kaoru's anxiety. I recalled the moments when Tamaki and I found Kyouya and Kaoru coming downstairs in heated argument, stopping only if the twins were in the room or when Kaoru suddenly fell silent and began to pale.

"That's… That's not funny." I wasn't aware how cold my tone sounded until Kaoru broke his gaze and began to promptly pick up the rest of the glass. As his left hand held the shards of glass, his right reached for another piece. The next time it did so, I grabbed his right wrist ceasing all further action. Through my grip I could feel the entire appendage from his fingertips to shoulder trembling. "Kaoru-"

"Haruhi." This time it was my turn to restrain my need to pull away. Kaoru's expression darkened and he glared at me with a silent rage. "Let go."

"No." I found myself speaking up defiantly. "What the heck are you doing pushing yourself like this? Little Anxiety Problem? I may not be a doctor, but I'm not stupid enough not to know anxiety is something to be worried over."

The Hitachiin's look increased in anger. He could have easily pulled away, but I guess his need to be polite was strong enough to keep his hand in place. Instead it balled up into a fist, "Not now, Haruhi. Not today, please."

"So you're just going to ignore it then!?" Here I was going again. This new piece of information about anxiety had made my surprisingly angry. How dumb could he be? If Kaoru wasn't healthy then how would he take care of the twins?

Kaoru took a deep breath, "Let go, Haruhi."

"No."

"Let go."

"I said no."

"Haruhi-!" Out of nowhere, his hand was pulled away, but Kaoru hadn't done it on his own accord. With a flash of brown and a large thud, glass scattering everywhere, Kaoru was tackled abruptly away from me in the opposite direction. When I blinked I found a large dog on top of the Hitachiin, barking loudly. "Agh! An… Antoinette!"

The pet's name made me spin around and for a millisecond I could swear I saw a death glare on Tamaki's face. But as ephemeral as the moment was he was already grinning brightly. Before I could say more, the blonde flew at me. "HARUHI!!!!!!!!! I MISSED YOU SOOOOOO MUCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!! IT'S BEEN SO LONG SINCE I LAST SAW MY DAUGHTER'S DARLING FACE!!!!!!"

I stiffened careful of the glass around us. Antoinette remained on top of the red head who was uselessly fighting against the canine. I did my best to push Tamaki away, "We saw each other yesterday, Tamaki. Hey!!"

The Suou released me with tearful eyes, "BUT HARUHIIIIII! HOW CAN I NOT MISS YOU? WHAT IF YOU DISAPPEAR AGAIN FOR… FOREVER!?"

"I'm not leaving. You know that."

"Tamaki!!" We turned in Kaoru's direction at the sound of his voice. "Get her off… me!"

Tamaki paused and innocently spoke, "But Kaoru… Antoinette is so fond of you!" For a moment, I could sense that the supposedly simple-minded host king was cruelly prolonging the scene. I nudged the blonde who sighed and clapped his hands, "Antoinette, come."

The dog swiftly did as commanded, jumping off Kaoru who sat up disoriented. Antoinette barked happily and I watched Tamaki embrace his canine companion. While I watched, this gave Kaoru time to pick up the large shards of glass again and stand. I got to my feet as well, but the previous moment together had placed me on the redhead's bad side for he overlooked me and walked towards Rebekah asking her to look for a broom. Before long, Tamaki was at my side. He wrapped his arms around me and chuckled, "Haruhi… now what could you have been doing with that man?"

I wasn't in the mood for his jokes, "Trying to learn about Kaoru's anxiety problem."

Tamaki froze and his chuckle turned into an uncomfortable laugh, "Ah… well… that's why you two were in such a heated staring contest." His voice lowered and he helpfully elaborated, "He takes medicine for that. You really don't need to worry."

"He was shaking."

It was with these last words that Tamaki loosened his hold and spun me around to look directly into his face. "You better keep that quiet. I'm not surprised the pills he's taking aren't working, especially with what happened within the last week. He hasn't cried in a very… long… time."

I stared back with wide eyes, "You know… You really need to warn me when you do that."

The mature Tamaki I was referring to disappeared just as quickly, the blonde running a hand through his golden locks, "Oh, you mean place yourself directly in front of my dazzling gaze? I apologize if I shocked you Haruhi, I do that to people."

Rolling my eyes, I turned and began to walk away, finding something to do. Tamaki's next words expressed both his foolish and mature thoughts, "Come now, Haruhi. Let it go for today. Besides, everyone will be here. You'll have to be patient with all us rich folk again, little commoner."

I did my best to keep that in mind, but soon I found myself forgetting his words.

The boys returned with squeals of delight at the sight of Antoinette and their Tama-Oji-san. Fuyumi was close behind and I made sure to note that she discreetly handed Kaoru what looked like a check. The young father did not look the least bit comfortable receiving what seemed to be an extremely large amount of money. I didn't know how much he had been given, but I eventually heard the man muttering to himself something about 50,000 American dollars. I did my best to push my thoughts to the back of my mind for today and eventually, I finally took Tamaki's words to mind and began to relax. I couldn't help but become comfortable once Kohaku and Keisuke were back, just as excited as ever now that they were finished seeing their grandfather. Kaoru avoided me, yet somehow we were able to remain content no matter what our thoughts were.

And so, within another hour, the guests of Kohaku and Keisuke's birthday party began to arrive.

Mori and Honey were the next guests to arrive, coming in a single black limo accompanied by their wives and children Honey was so excited about telling me. After the young uncles greeted the twins a happy birthday, they were quickly upon me with their Lolita and Wild glory, introducing their adorable school mate to their spouses and offspring. It happened quite quickly, Honey started going on one of his hyper rants about his wife, Lilianne or Lily, who was the female Lolita in her own right, just as blonde and with sparkling blue eyes. She was just as cute as her husband who was taller than her by a few inches, and boasted a polite smile whenever he spoke. I was surprised at how similar he was, remembering quite well the list of martial arts she knew that Honey had told me. Before I could really get my mind around that, their two year old, Mimiru came into view holding Usu-chan in her small arms. Personally, before I met Mimi, I didn't know a child's eyes could be so big **and** so blue. The little one was shy and only giggled when her father introduced her, overflowing with pride, before she sheepishly hid behind Usu-chan's head. Honey and Lily seemed to love their adorable toddler and were raising her like most rich parents would, but she still had a buzzing discipline about her that seemed to come from the more violent part of her family. Luckily, she was like any toddler and was easily led away by Kohaku and Keisuke who wanted another playmate.

This turned our attentions to Mori, who introduced Aiko to me with as few words as only Mori could. His wife, like Lily, was extremely similar to her husband and she greeted me with a silent bow and a smile. I internally felt lucky for knowing Mori and Honey so well, for if I had never met them, meeting their wives would have been difficult. Mori's son, Takuya, was an exact miniature version of his father, from the boy's cropped jet black hair to his (slightly larger) dark eyes, with the identical air of mysteriousness that Mori had mastered. Yet I couldn't help noticing that little Takuya did not have the dignified boldness his parents possessed. It was a lot simpler to see that he was more of an obedient son than one that could stand as Mori's clone. The boy greeted me in a way very similar to the twins' greetings to their Aunt hours before, but after I gave a smile and Mori wordlessly nudged the boy forward, Takuya presented himself a bit more naturally before following Mimi and accompanying the Hitachiin twins.

As the day went on, I was surprised to find that the kids knew how to entertain themselves in the Ohtori's modern, but bland home. Most of the time, I found Kohaku, Keisuke, Mimi, and Takuya chasing after Antoinette this way and that before disappearing further out into the yard. I only found them reappearing when new playmates arrived, such as the Nekozawas who came shortly after Honey and Mori. I had never known Kaoru to have possessed any relationship with the Nekozawa family, but when the founder of Ouran's Black Magic Club entered the building with his five year old son and four year old daughter, all dressed in black coats, and gave the Hitachiin family a casual greeting, I realized what now connected the younger Hitachiin twin to the Nekozawa.

Young Umehito II and his sister, Katrina, were swift to join the twins without much more than a quick hello in Kaoru's direction. I found Kaoru welcoming Nekozawa just as casually, even going to the lengths of giving the blonde a manly half-hug of sorts. Nekozawa merely smiled and returned the hello before noticing me and giving a friendly wave in my direction. The black magic enthusiast must have grown strong over the passed seven years for he no longer wore the black wig and hood over his face. He must have made amends with the young half of the pair that used to terrorize him with a flashlight for after waving, he turned to Kaoru for further conversation. Hearing a small part of their conversation, I learned the reason why the two were now very close friends. It seemed Nekozawa's four year old, Katrina, had an adorable crush on the older half of the second generation Hitachiin twins. The problem was (though I doubt either father thought it was a problem) that Kohaku was completely oblivious to the girl's feelings. Kohaku wasn't interested in girls just yet.

With six children and eight adults, the twins' special day was turning about to be a decent sized get-together. Nekozawa had married as well, but his wife was at home with their third child, a baby daughter who had come down with a cold. When I thought all the guests had arrived, two more families appeared before the party truly began.

It seemed Kaoru had somehow kept in contact with Renge over the many years, though I really didn't understand why. The queen of the fangirls had gotten older, taken over her father's company, and then got married with the heir to a successful Spanish Bull Ranch in southern Spain. At first it was difficult to imagine, Renge, of all people, marrying a country boy from Spain, as she came into view with her sons, three to be exact, ages ranging from five to three. Yet once her husband entered the small celebration parlor, my surprise dissipated. Ricardo, Renge's husband, was extremely- scratch that- tremendously handsome and had an amazing body to boot. I did my best to control my gaze so not to keep glancing at the Spanish man who greeted everyone with a happy-go-lucky attitude, grabbing Kaoru who was indefinitely smaller than him in a huge embrace, and saying in fluent Spanish, "Hola, Kaoru. Que pasa? Hace frio, eh?" The man quickly released the poor Hitachiin and turned to the twins who had come to say hello, "Ay! Feliz Cumpleaños, chicos! Como estaís? Practicamos español mucho, si?"

"Por supuesto." Kaoru replied with an amused look. "Decimos español todos los días." Ricardo grinned widely before giving Kaoru a rough but friendly pat on the back. The Spaniard had remarkably white teeth and before I knew it, I was staring all over again.

Ricardo joined his wife and their sons. Renge must have been on her way to forming her own host club, for all three boys had most of their father's looks. She seemed quite happy with herself and once she noticed me, she was swift to start a conversation about the last seven years. All I could really get from her long rapid speech was that in the seven years I had been doing nothing but studying, she had begun her plan in publicizing Host Clubs, had married Ricardo, and had had three boys one after the other. For a moment, I felt slightly out of place hearing about all my old school mates already having families, but I had dedicated myself to my career so I really couldn't complain.

Before long, the final couple arrived, childless, but well known. Though he hadn't had children yet, Ritsu Kasanoda and his fiancé were invited to the party and seemed very happy together. His fiancé was a very beautiful and gentle woman, which surprised me especially because I knew she would be becoming a Yakuza wife. What's more, she was 100 percent deaf, and spoke using sign language, which Kasanoda was happy to translate for us. Yukiko did not seem to mind Kasanoda's strong facial features, so I was quite happy to say they looked to be a perfect match.

By the time all the guests had come (except Kyouya, who had yet to come back from the errand of his), the party was in full swing. I found myself constantly submerged in some conversation with my old schoolmates and at times had to repeat several stories and accounts. Everyone seemed happy that I had come back, and I began to truly feel the effects of living on the other side of the world away from family and friends. Most of the old group were either married with kids, or still single, but all had changed a bit. Eventually, I had to stand up from my seat among friends and take a breather from the adult conversation.

Refilling my cup at the punch bowl, I met up with Tamaki and Kaoru, who were having their own dialogue. Tamaki had been uncharacteristically quiet the entire day and when he noticed me, he plainly smiled, but did not come rushing at me like he normally was prone to doing. The red head beside him, nodded in my direction before returning to their conversation. For some reason, they were speaking in French.

"_Where do you think he is exactly? I have no idea when to end this thing." _Kaoru spoke quietly. _"With Yoshio upstairs, I rather not overstay my welcome."_

I strained my ears to understand them. It had been a while since I had spoken French let alone listened to it, but luckily they were speaking simply enough that I could comprehend the jist of the conversation.

Tamaki answered back with a gentle smile, _"Don't worry about it. I come by here all the time and disrupt the peace. Let it go on as long as you like, Kyouya's father won't mind." _I sighed, realizing that it had been the first time I had ever heard Tamaki speak in his first language.

Kaoru frowned slightly and crossed his arms. _"Kyouya told me that there would be nothing scheduled on this day. He knows how awkward the boys and I feel when visiting his home. What type of errand takes four and a half damn hours?"_

Tamaki could only shrug in return before noticing that I was still standing a short distance away. He continued to smile, _"Interested in jumping in, Haruhi?"_

I pulled back, quickly embarrassed for eavesdropping. "Um… well actually I haven't spoken in French in a long time." I glanced up and found my gaze on Kaoru who watched me expressionlessly. "I still understand you two though."

"_Then you must know who we're talking about, yes?" _Tamaki added. _"_Oka-san_ really doesn't know how to relax nowadays."_

Kaoru had become mute and was still looking at me. I wasn't sure if he was still peeved about earlier, but his body language did not look too happy. _"Haruhi,"_ The Hitachiin finally began,_ "how do you feel seeing everyone again?"_

"Huh?" I paused to think about it, "Well, I really am speechless…a lot of things have changed, but that's life, I guess. I'm surprised most of them are married already. Renge has three kids and she's only twenty-four!"

Nodding, Kaoru opened his mouth to speak, but Tamaki overcame him energetically. _"All of them are arranged you know?"_ I gave him a confused look, _"Everyone. Mori, Honey, Nekozawa, Renge, and Kasanoda, all their marriages or engagements were arranged."_

"What?" I started.

"_Hikaru's too."_ Tamaki and I were brought to look at Kaoru whose eyes had gone distant for a moment as he had suddenly added to the list of arranged marriages. The Hitachiin looked down, holding his palm up and using the index finger of his other hand to form calculations in his palm. His mind must have fallen into some piece of work again for he sighed distractedly.

Tamaki grabbed him around the shoulders, calling out in Japanese, "Hey hey hey! No working at the party now! I'm telling the twins!"

Kaoru broke out of his trance, the look on his face saying, 'What was I doing?'. He blinked silently for a few seconds before exhaling deeply once more. I caught him muttering under his breath as he straightened, "He did say he'd fly in Monday."

Suddenly, before I could begin tampering with and questioning Kaoru's words, Kohaku and Keisuke came running out of nowhere towards their father. Alarm and worry were burdening their expressions, and Kaoru was swiftly removed from his thoughts at the sight of the two. "Papa, Papa!" both twins called at once.

The young father knelt down protectively, "What, what's wrong, Kohaku, Keisuke?"

Kohaku frowned and explained, "Papa, it's Tortuga!"

"He got lost!" Keisuke added.

"We can't find him…"

"Anywhere!"

Kaoru tiredly shook his head, "Where was the last place you played with him?"

The brothers exchanged looks for contemplation before turning to their father and reciting unanimously, "We were by the big tree at the front, where the car is."

Standing, Kaoru ran a hand through his red locks. "Ok." He started, "Go and check under that tree. There is no sun, so Tortuga is pretty sluggish today. He could be there. But just in case, I'll go tell your Oba-chans and Oji-sans to keep an eye out for Tortuga, understand?"

The two nodded, worry still in their faces, and ran off towards the front yard in search for the family pet. I couldn't help but find it amusing that the boys were as worried of losing their pet boa constrictor as one is worried about a lost puppy. Kaoru glanced back at Tamaki and I, releasing just one more sigh, "I have a bad feeling about this."

Kyouya's POV

"Ugh… the weather's pretty bad today, isn't it?"

I was quiet as I drove down the road towards my home in the wealthy district of Tokyo. The homes were beginning to disperse evenly as the lots began to grow in size, as did the yard space and house sizes. Before I answered the comment, I glanced out my window at the bleak overcast above. It was three o' clock, but nightfall was already setting. "Hm." I replied nonchalantly, thinking nothing of the solemn atmosphere the sky was bringing. "A bleak overcast is the least of your concerns during a month such as February, at least we haven't come across any black ice recently."

There was a sigh in reply, before he worded his agreement, "True." Silence overcame the vehicle for a few minutes, as I kept my eyes on the road, refraining from placing my gaze in his direction. He didn't seem to be paying me much mind either, his eyes observing the passing landscape with a lack of interest.

I wasn't going to admit outwardly, but the sky wasn't the only thing that brought such a depressing air to mind. It was moreover caused by the forlorn expression his face was boasting as he looked out the passenger side window of my Ferrari. I wasn't assisting in the situation either, for I was not one to start a conversation if it was not required. Maybe I could have been a better host, but I wasn't exactly thrilled to be spending the time I had promised Kaoru with the wrong twin.

"Kyouya…" His voice broke the silence, as he sat up and ran a hand through his expertly styled red locks. He stretched with a yawn, "Just wanted to say, thanks again for taking time to pick me up. Knowing you, I must be interrupting some important meeting or something, hm?"

This time, I allowed my eyes wander and fall upon the man beside me. The first thing that came to my attention was that he was fingering his wedding ring absentmindedly as he spoke, slipping it on and off, out of habit, no less. I lifted my gaze and met his golden eyes. The dark creases that had etched their way under his eyes remained the evidence of a man who had survived a number of sleepless nights at the office, peculiarly identical to the creases that weighed down his younger brother's eyes, though Kaoru had earned them due to sleepless nights feeding and diaper changing, singing lullabies and calming nightmares. "You don't need to mention it."

The grin that, by now, I recognized was characteristic of the older twin, lit his face as he nodded in acknowledgment. "You've always been dependable, Kyouya." He slipped his wedding ring back onto his left hand, before continuing, "So… you have any news to share with me about the old group?"

I simply shook my head, "I don't take it in my best interest to be the person who has to that, Hikaru." I ignored the frown that appeared on his face for a split second before his business tact returned, "I rarely find anything worth sharing that you do not already know."

"Ah, I see." He glanced away and out the window again. The man was made uncomfortable by my presence and he found himself no longer interested in conversation. The Hitachiin began to watch the road again and we allowed the dialogue to die.

The minutes came and went as we approached nearer to the estate. Hikaru was intelligent enough to keep his mouth shut the remaining part of the trip so as to not place himself in just another awkward position. It never ceased to surprise me that somehow, Maria had decided to sleep with the difficult twin, when Kaoru could have sufficed. It was difficult for me to accept it; that the man who sat beside me in the vehicle was so ignorant of everything around him. I retrained a frustrated breath on my part, taking a second to readjust my glasses just as my home came into view.

At the sight, Hikaru had sat up straight as well, hand instinctively flying to fix the tie of his suit professionally. It appeared to me that both Hitachiin twins had a fear of my family, more specifically my father. I chuckled inwardly and avoided his gaze as I drove up to the gate. _Should I tell him that his appearance is the least of his worries? Maybe I should have warned Kaoru, or at the least Haruhi?_

It took seconds for security to recognize the Ferrari before the gate effortlessly slid open. Hikaru was unusually grave in appearance now for his expression had stiffened at the sight of my home. I gave myself permission to grin coolly. "It seems to me that you are about to attend a funeral? Shall I make my father aware of this?"

The Hitachiin glanced in my direction and made an effort to relax. He broke out into his grin again and released a long sigh. "Well if you say so."

"Correction: I never said anything." I shook my head and pulled up behind Kaoru's blue Mini Cooper. Hikaru made no signs of recognition. "Here we are."

We exited the Ferrari quietly, I, smoothing out the wrinkles in my coat, Hikaru, once again, playing with his tie. The suit had become normal attire for him, as it had with me, and at the moment, he wore a sleek looking gray suit accented with a pink shirt and silk pink tie. He had dressed for the occasion of Valentine's Day most likely, but I controlled the urge to point that out. I stood beside the driver's seat and drummed my fingers on the top of the Ferrari. He caught sight of my actions and quickly let go his tie. Never in my entire life had I expected to find a Hitachiin twin more anal than myself.

"Shall we go inside?" I queried without moving. I could not hear the sounds of the birthday party in the west wing, which was perfect. In truth, Hikaru was going to be a special guest on this special day, like it or not, and I would just have to see how Kaoru would handle it.

Hikaru nodded and was the first to make a move. He took a few steps in direction of the estate holding up his business tact with full force, but abruptly stopped. I raised my head to acknowledge the unusual action. "Yes?"

The man turned and gave me a doubtful look, reminding me of Kaoru, who had a habit of the doing the exact same thing whenever he had to come to my house to converse with father. Something was on the other CEO's mind. "Kyouya, may I ask you something." I bobbed my head in silence. "Haruhi… she-"

"Go ask her yourself." I cut him short, not possessing enough tact to hold the coldness out of my voice. Maybe it was due to the fact it was Kohaku and Keisuke's birthday, and the anniversary of Maria's death that made me feel extremely irked to have Hikaru bring Haruhi up. _What about Kaoru? Would you ever ask about your brother?_

Hikaru watched me with careful eyes and nodded without complaint. He had learned enough from being the owner of a company to know not to argue with fellow CEOs. He began to walk again and after a moment to release any remaining notion of anger, I followed behind.

Suddenly just as Hikaru passed by the large dormant tree in our front yard, he let out an abrupt yell. "Holy Shit!"

I found myself rushing to his side, just as he was pulling back from whatever had caused him to yell. He nearly crashed into me, but I was able to sidestep his panicked approach. Narrowing my eyes, I walked passed the hyperventilating Hitachiin and placed myself in his position. "What in the world are you…?" My eyes fell downward onto the dark figure of Tortuga, coiled and evidently sleeping. The cold blooded boa had no energy with the lack of sunlight, and would definitely be of no threat to either of us. I gave Hikaru a skeptical glance before leaning down to pick him up.

"What the hell are you doing?" The older twin blurted out in shock. "Don't pick it up."

"And why…" I answered indifferently before getting to my feet again, "…shouldn't I?"

I held Tortuga in my hands gently, the snake slithering into the sleeve of my coat to the only source of warmth he could find. I gazed into the darkness of my sleeve, "Well if you're here, they mustn't be close behind."

The Hitachiin inched over. His eyes were wide with shock at how calmly I had picked up the random boa constrictor that had been lying in his path. I extended my snake-clad arm towards him and inwardly enjoyed the sight of the man jump back. _How did Maria come to sleep with you again?_

"Kyouya, what the hell is that? Why are you holding it? Why do you have snakes on your estate?" Hikaru rapidly queried. "Who's close behind?"

Stiffening, I turned my back to him just as he repeated my final words. Before either of us could continue, a pair of voices floated into the air within hearing range. Perfect timing.

"Hurry, Kei, Tortuga might freeze to death!" One small voice called out. Hikaru froze at the sound as if he had heard a ghost.

"Wait, wait, Haku! My shoe got untied!" A second voice added, Hikaru was staring at me in utter confusion.

"Forget your shoe. Tortuga might die! You want him to die?"

"No! Haku that's not nice to say."

Without a longer wait, the second set of Hitachiin twins came running around the corner from the west wing. At the sight of the identical brothers, wearing identical outfits, I found myself smiling at the sight. Who knew how Hikaru was reacting behind me from afar?

Both boys came to an abrupt halt, nearly knocking each other over at the sight of me. For a second, my presence had to register before happiness lit their small features. They screamed with extreme joy and ran to me, not seeing their 'Uncle' a short distance away. At the same time, they greeted me, "Kyouya-Oji-san! You finally came! We thought you forgot!"

I leaned down, "Now, what an odd thing to say? Do you think, of all people, I would forget that today is? I was the one who planned your party at my house, remember?" Two raven-haired heads nodded in agreement to my final statement, before they exploded in a fit of giggles. I continued to smile, knowing full well how unusual I looked to Hikaru. Holding out my arm, I pulled up my sleeve. "Look who I found?"

"Tortuga!!" Kohaku screamed in pure elation. He reached up and took the snake from my arm before placing the boa named Turtle onto his shoulders.

"You saved him, Kyouya-Oji-san!" Keisuke added as he got closer to Kohaku and the snake.

Straightening, I smiled wider, "I couldn't let him freeze now, now could I?"

The twins shook their heads, attention falling onto the snake who was attempting to search for a warm place. He found it within the neck of Kohaku's turtle neck and slid into the boy's top, Kohaku giggling in return. With their focus on their pet, I moved my own gaze onto the other Hitachiin behind me, who, for some reason had gone pale at the sight before him. I guess it must have been due to resurrected memories. The look I gave Hikaru, forced him to step forward slowly, as if he was standing on a sheet of thin ice. "Who…?" The words failed him.

"My nephews." I replied confidently, challenging him with my words. "Looks strangely familiar doesn't it?"

He returned to reality with my words and shrugged as if it didn't affect him. His face lit up with a mischievous grin, "You could say that. Nephews, hm? Well, it's been a while since I've seen two of kind…" His words made no sense, though I believe he meant well. There was a millisecond pause between words before he rushed forward, like a man on a mission. "Well, look at you two, a pair of handsome devils if I ever did see one."

His voice, it echoed into the air and lingered for a moment. Instead of turning, the boys stood still before gradually moving their heads in direction of the stranger. Amber gazes meeting with the older Hitachiin's, Kohaku and Keisuke found themselves staring at such a familiar, yet unrecognizable man before them. I watched as their eyes grew larger in a mix of fear and surprise before both parted their lips and… screamed. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!"

Hikaru yelped and jumped away as if he had just set off a bomb. He looked to me in alarm, "What did I do!?"

Shaking my head, even I was puzzled by their sudden outburst. For some reason or another, the young boys seemed to be horrified by the sight of Kaoru's twin as if they weren't twins themselves. I really didn't know what to do and I could only stand in shock for the longest time. Hikaru made a movement towards the two, but Kohaku and Keisuke only pulled back. They held onto each other and stared at the older Hitachiin cautiously.

The thought came to mind swiftly at their reaction. If they did not accept their biological father now, they might as well never come in terms with his existence.

"Kyouya, what the hell?" Hikaru hissed and looked in my direction. "What's wrong with them? They look like they've just seen some kind of… monster or something."

I felt my lips part to agree, but I shut my mouth before I could answer. Instead I came to the twins carefully, "Now, now, boys. What's wrong?"

To my misfortune, their eyes were still focused on Hikaru's face and they ignored me. I backed away and decided to change the plan of the day. Grabbing Hikaru by the forearm, I ordered, "Come with m-"

"Kohaku, Keisuke!?"

"Shit." I came to a stop, before I could even take a step forward, at the sound of Kaoru's worried tone. I released his brother and gave a frustrated groan. Hikaru could only stare in further confusion.

It happened quickly, like a blow to the head. I remained in my place and pushed my glasses to the bridge of my nose, waiting for the inevitable. I could only curse my lack of luck that Kaoru had indescribably good hearing when his sons were concerned. Clenching my fists, I was aware that I had been caught red handed with the man that Kaoru did not want the twins to see.

The second half of the first generation Hitachiin twins ran into view before any further words could be exchanged. I stood in place like a criminal willingly turning himself into his fate with the authorities. His eyes were instinctively targeted lower for Kohaku and Keisuke who, at the moment they felt his presence, tackled his thighs. Panic dripped from every word that came from his mouth, as Hikaru and I watched him. "Kohaku, Keisuke, what's the matter, hijos? Why did you scream?" The twins grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled Kaoru down to a squat, who had yet to notice our presences. Even in the midst of disorientation, the siblings were able to remain in sync.

"Papa, Papa, that man, that man stole your face!" The two declared with a mix of fear and realization. A pair of fingers pointed in Hikaru's direction who had lost all color in his face for the second time within the last ten minutes.

Kaoru glanced between the two faces without looking up trying to comprehend what the boys had just said. His mind was in so much shock at the words that they weren't registering into the young man's head. I closed my eyes when I heard another pair of footsteps become audible, Haruhi and Tamaki were going to make their appearances soon. Finally, one of the adult Hitachiin twins spoke, " 'Papa…?' "

The father looked up, a look of pure dread plastered on his face. He met his older twin's eyes before getting to his feet and suddenly pushing Kohaku and Keisuke behind him. There was no use hiding them anymore.

They stared at each other for the longest time, Kaoru's gaze never faltering as he looked into the face of his twin, who only looked back. By the time Haruhi and Tamaki had reached the scene, Kaoru was openly shaking his head, mouthing the word "No."

I saw Haruhi glance from one man to the other and then to me. She glared, but I glanced away unfazed.

Silence enveloped us all for several more minutes, the only sounds that could be heard were the twins whimpering behind Kaoru. It the young parent who chose to break the long stare so as to look to the birthday celebrants. I did my best to overlook the fact that Haruhi had continued to glare at me from her place some distance away. The only thing that took her attention off my form was Kaoru's voice that had decided to return to him momentarily, "Hikaru… what… what are you doing here?" Sluggishly, Kaoru brought his golden gaze upon his twin.

At once, Hikaru reacted to the question carelessly, his grin returning, "I… I was just about to ask you the exact same question, Kaoru." Hands flying to his tie, Hikaru began to loosen the knot he had worked so hard to tighten some time before. He effortlessly released the silk accessory and slid it off, placing it haphazardly in his suit pocket. "I guess... with you here, I can relax a little, is that right?"

Amber meeting amber once more, Kaoru frowned, "Hikaru, you told me you'd fly in Monday." The parent's hands fell on the heads of the black-haired twins beside him, who watched their relative warily.

"And you told me you had plans that you couldn't reschedule." Hikaru swiftly retorted, causing Kaoru to bite his lip uncomfortably. "Besides, I do recall that I said, 'I'd try,' to come in Monday. Unfortunately, the flight from France to Japan was on a Sunday, and if I had missed it, you wouldn't have gotten to see me until late Wednesday evening."

For a moment, Kaoru looked away, as if mentally cursing his luck. His eyes found mine and with his next statement, I knew he was referring more to me than his sibling, "Why… didn't you call me?"

I held my tongue long enough for Hikaru to answer, "Like I said, you told me that you had 'plans'."

"But if you were still coming in, it would've been best to call me beforehand. At least to make me aware that you were in the country." Kaoru's voice had begun to rise, but he quickly stopped himself before the volume change had become evident.

Hikaru suddenly began to walk towards Kaoru before speaking up, "Well, the scheduled trip wasn't what was expected. Hell, I wasn't expecting to see you until tomorrow either. What were you doing here again?" No one seemed to move after the older Hitachiin who had narrowed the distance between him and his brother. Hikaru was now barely a foot away from Kaoru and the boys, but he had come to halt as if an invisible wall stood between them, the Brotherly Love package from years passed had long gone out of commission.

Kaoru parted his lips to answer, but with the face-thief closing in, Kohaku and Keisuke had tugged him back by the back-hem of his top causing their guardian to nearly stumble over. He regained his balance before loosening the twins' grips on his shirt. The second pair of Hitachiin twins shook their heads at their 'father's' actions and pouted in confusion. Opening his mouth again, Kaoru elaborated, "A children's birthday party."

This reply had not been foreseen by the married brother, whose eyes came to widen for a second. " 'Birthday Party?' " Chuckling, as though Kaoru had made a joke, Hikaru ran a hand through his hair uneasily. "That was your plan for the day… a 'Children's birthday party'? Whose party would be, first, held at Kyouya's place, and second, be more important than picking up your twin brother."

The older twin's selfish characteristic and the fact that he had made his identity known as Kaoru's 'twin', brought Kaoru to clench his fists. My gaze flew to Haruhi, who appeared to be debating whether to stop the two or not. Tamaki was watching helplessly, and I could tell that he was having his own mental battle between breaking the two up with an imbecilic interruption or remaining unusually quiet. Before either could make up their mind and Kaoru could come up with an answer that wouldn't destroy the life he had worked so hard to build these passed four years and six months, two small voices added themselves to the would-be argument.

"Ours!"

"Kohaku, Keisuke!" Even Kaoru's stern call went unnoticed by the four year olds who had decided to move away from their parent's shadow.

Skeptically lifting an eyebrow, Hikaru grunted, "Yours? " He received a uniform nod from both boys. With a stranger around, the two had become identity-less, speaking like a single person, no signs of their differing personalities in sight. "Well-"

"…and you're not invited!" The two interrupted him.

The Hitachiin stared at the pair for a second of thought. To Kohaku and Keisuke's misfortune, Hikaru's grin had yet to leave his face. Leaning forward, breaking the invisible boundary between him and his younger brother, Hikaru came face to face with his identical twin, the closest distance they had ever stood in, in years, "Well…" He repeated calmly, "wouldn't that be your… 'Papa's' decision?"

Kaoru had neither pulled back or leaned in. Instead he froze. I had the strongest notion to punch Hikaru for wording his question in such a way; a threat disguised as a simple inquiry with more disastrous power than Hikaru could imagine. There was no way Kaoru could deny his brother now…

Kohaku and Keisuke turned and gazed up at the twin they had called Papa for four years of their short life.

Releasing his fists, heaving a long sigh, and gazing directly into his sibling's bright golden eyes, Kaoru halfheartedly nodded. He threw on a mask of a smile and declared, "The more the merrier… right, Hikaru?"

This only made Hikaru's face brighten further. For the first time in nearly five years, he took Kaoru under the chin, like he had done for the entertainment of fangirls everywhere, and held the other man in place. With the helpless look upon Kaoru's face that would have brought screams from a number of frivolous teenage girls interested in the taboo of committed incest between identical brothers, Hikaru playfully breathed a, "Perfect!" Before releasing his twin and simply leaving the dejected parent for the direction of Haruhi and Tamaki.

I watched him go without words. Haruhi and Tamaki had been caught by surprise themselves, and even the 'natural' could not come up with something to say to the Hitachiin, who strolled to them and escorted them away, breaking into a casual conversation as if he had not just spoken to his brother and seen two boys that he had not known existed until today.

It was Kohaku and Keisuke's cries that brought me to look at Kaoru again.

"Papa, why'd you let him come!?" Kohaku loudly complained, pouting. "He stole your face!"

"I don't like him." Keisuke mumbled, shaking his head and tugging at the man's shirt again. "Why'd you let Kyouya-Oji-san bring him over?"

His eyes fell on me, blank of all emotion. I could only guess what he could have been thinking. I did not break the gaze and returned the look just as emotionlessly.

"I…" He began before returning his attention on the two upset four year olds at his feet, "don't know… I just don't know."

With this, he completely ignored my presence and took the two by the hands, leading them away.

I watched him go, hearing the boys' voices long after they had disappeared at the bend of the path that led to the west side of the house.

"Papa… who was that man… anyway? Why'd he have your face?"

"Because… Kohaku… he was like you."

"What you mean, Papa?"

"That man… is my older twin brother like you are to Keisuke."

"But Papa, we never saw him before though."

"He's been gone a long time, Keisuke. He lives very far away… He can't come visit very often."

"Because he's busy doing grown-up things?"

"Yeah… you can say that, Keisuke."

"That's not a -excuse. Papa, you told us twins got to stick together-!"

"-like glue!"

"Shhhh, enough now… I know what I said… Just be nice to him for Papa, ok? Be nice to your Hikaru-Oji-san."

His voice dissipated into the atmosphere and I heard no more.

Instead of following them, I headed for the door to the house for a conversation with father…

* * *

DONE! Ok, sorry everyone for the long wait and the abrupt ending to this chapter! Work, summer assignments, and trips all over Europe, not much time for fanfic writing. My chapters seem to be getting longer and longer… sorry! I was having a difficult time trying to avoid writing obnoxiously out of character with Hikaru now in the picture. The way his personality matured over seven years is a bit more blurred than the other characters in the story. I really had a hard time with this one. I'm exhausted… mentally!

Well, I guess you know what you should be doing next! Clicky the little button saying **REVIEW TO STORY**!! Please leave me a pretty comment.

**Thanks for reading!! **Kohaku and Keisuke give you all imaginary cookies because Keisuke doesn't like cake!

**Next Time:** Hikaru has made a sudden appearance into the lives of his 'nephews', Kohaku and Keisuke, but the boys aren't ready to give this new relative a warm welcome. Biological father or not, the second generation Hitachiin twins aren't going to let the face-thief go unscathed, no matter what their 'Papa' tells them.

Also, Hikaru in a sense has crashed the party, not only in Kohaku and Keisuke's eyes, but Kaoru's as well. How will Kaoru deal with the twins and his brother's constant clashes? How will Haruhi react when she witnesses just how broken the bond between the Hitachiin twins truly is?

"Four years!? You've been raising them for the last damn four years without telling me!?"

"Look, you have your problems, I have mine! There wasn't any need to get you involved!"

" 'Any need!?' Damn it, Kaoru, there wasn't any need to take the time and tell those two I even existed!?"

"Hikaru, there wasn't any need to get you in trouble with father by adding my mistake to your list of responsibilities!"

"Kaoru, they don't even know who I am!"

Cue the lights and Dramatic music…. STAY TUNED!!


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